Maybe, instead of 10,000 hour pilot we ought to be taking of 2000-landing-pilot etc.
Having flown with "high time" pilots who have exhibited the skill level of 500 hours experience simply repeated 10 or twenty times, yes, there is more than total hours logged in the equation.
Junebug:
The aircraft they're on are long haul aircraft and moving to short haul means a different aircraft. You can't hop aircraft types and routes are bid on by seniority which you don't violate.
Simply debating "complexity" to arrive at "you can't get there from here". Perhaps "seniority" is a causal factor? They don't have to fly PIC in the short haul aircraft, do they? They would be placed in them to maintain hands on skills. They weren't born qualified in the long haul bird, but typically flew the carrier's short haul aircraft to gain the seniority to get a posh slot that allows their skills to deteriorate.
In short, perhaps the current model doesn't work in more ways than one. Supplemental training is "too expensive" and "violating seniority" can't be done. Seems like the status quo is more important than raising skill levels.