Originally Posted by
Chris the Robot
The Merchant Navy operators get a reduction in Tonnage Tax for employing British officers. With flags of convenience and crews from the cheaper parts of the world becoming the norm, the government reckoned that if the trend continued there wouldn't be any British officers left. Therefore they brought in this initiative to act as an incentive for firms to employ British officers.
This proves that there is only so far that the airlines can push it before a similar situation occurs in the aviation industry.
Sad thing is, the airlines will scrape until they find the bottom of the barrel.