To add to the figure are all the guys with ratings working on type with unfrozen licences out in the @rse end of the earth and scattered all over the globe who have been trying to get a stable job in the UK for years without success.
Im not referring to the guys earning good money in the ME either.
The sad fact of life is there has been more recruitment over the last few years but it has been more of a closed shop during these periods than ever before
If by some miracle there becomes a pilot shortage in the UK then this void will simply be filled by one or two large ftos - they are well geared up to regulate the flow of fresh resource.