About 20% of the FO workforce has left this year, many more waiting on start dates. Very few have been replaced.
A large number of captains (including sim check) have left, many more awaiting the outcome of this negotiation to decide on applications.
Flights are getting cancelled because good will (work on RDO's and extending) has been withdrawn. No crew = no flight.
No it will end with them being unemployed when they lose their contract. QF will then either move the flying in house or outsource to another contractor. Network or Alliance would be more than capable, not to mention some other green fields operation that might pop up
Ask the domestic mainline pilots how much "excess capacity" they have to absorb the extra 75,000 hours per year of flying the 717 does.
Ask the Qlink pilots how much "excess capacity" they have. Pretty sure that next year the 717 is again going to pickup up more QLD regional stuff due to "resource shortages" at the Link.
How long do you think it will take to find 200 pilots and train them up on such an orphan type? How much will that cost?
The Cobham contract will end, probably sooner than 2027, but that will be due to the end of life of the type.
The cost of "greenfielding" this operation by far outweighs the benefit of sticking it to a couple of hundred pilots trying to save their company. Yes, you heard me, SAVE COBHAM. Cobham seem incapable of grasping the fact that they cannot retain or attract pilots due to the sub par T&C's that they offer. Without being able to provide QANTAS with the product that they trade in, they are rendering themselves obsolete.