British Airways Direct Entry Pilot
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 995
Likes: 100
From: Botswana
Personally the main reason is commuting. SH commuting steals from your time off and quality of life in a hugely unacceptable way. I had to live part time on the Bath Road for the best part of eight years whilst on SH and it’s atrocious for mental/physical health. I’m simply never going back to that, no financial carrot or stick is enough. LH is just a far more enjoyable job too. For other people it’s exactly as go-around flap 15 has stated above. Couldn’t have put it better.
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 898
Likes: 73
From: UK
I too think the biggest driver is commuting. The increase in quality of life that comes with living too far away from Heathrow to comfortably do short haul, is very significant. The company are currently playing nice by addressing this take home pay differential issue with this restructuring, but I am quite sure they will also add in a little stick if it doesn’t achieve the desired result.
Joined: Jul 2025
Posts: 6
Likes: 3
From: Mars
Congratulations and hold pool entered within 24 hours of passing sim assessment.
Start date offered within 1 week of passing sim assessment for 5 months time.
I did query earlier start dates but was told that was the earliest they had. It works well for me as it allows me 2 months breathing space to make sure I’m 110% happy with the decision to move and then a further 3 months to serve full notice to my current Airline.
Start date offered within 1 week of passing sim assessment for 5 months time.
I did query earlier start dates but was told that was the earliest they had. It works well for me as it allows me 2 months breathing space to make sure I’m 110% happy with the decision to move and then a further 3 months to serve full notice to my current Airline.
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 7
Likes: 2
From: London
Congratulations and hold pool entered within 24 hours of passing sim assessment.
Start date offered within 1 week of passing sim assessment for 5 months time.
I did query earlier start dates but was told that was the earliest they had. It works well for me as it allows me 2 months breathing space to make sure I’m 110% happy with the decision to move and then a further 3 months to serve full notice to my current Airline.
Start date offered within 1 week of passing sim assessment for 5 months time.
I did query earlier start dates but was told that was the earliest they had. It works well for me as it allows me 2 months breathing space to make sure I’m 110% happy with the decision to move and then a further 3 months to serve full notice to my current Airline.
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 648
Likes: 74
From: uk
Pay deal and career restructure marginally rejected, with the pilot workforce divided at virtually 50% in favour and against it. Only that union could achieve such a split. With a downturn around the corner and the oil crisis only getting worse this places the pilots bargaining power in a very marginal position. The members must now look at why reps delivered such a poor result.
Joined: May 2023
Posts: 14
Likes: 1
From: United kingdom
Surely this points to it being a mistake to reject the proposal, and the union reps actually getting a fairly good offer given the current climate?
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 648
Likes: 74
From: uk
No, the current proposal was negotiated before the Iran war. Three items have been mixed with no need.
-Career restructure
-Professional standards
-Pay deal ( in fact this is not yet due)
By combining all in one, the proposal has been rejected where if it had been split in parts on wider timeline each item could have been voted on on their merit.
The honest thing to do now would be to park the pay deal until it is due. Separately vote on the career restructure. Then focus on why some behaviours end up on the front page of the Daily Mail.
Then when the pay deal is due negotiate this in a simple way as it has been done in the past.
Otherwise you continue to propose a rank asymmetric mediocre pay increment in exchange of other undesirable elements that some may been pressured to accept simply because of the poor timeline that got us here.
Last edited by eagle21; 30th April 2026 at 15:51.
Joined: May 2023
Posts: 14
Likes: 1
From: United kingdom
No, the current proposal was negotiated before the Iran war. Three items have been mixed with no nee.
-Career restructure
-Professional standards
-Pay deal
By combining all in one, the proposal has been rejected where if it had been split in parts on wider timeline each item could have been voted on on their merit.
-Career restructure
-Professional standards
-Pay deal
By combining all in one, the proposal has been rejected where if it had been split in parts on wider timeline each item could have been voted on on their merit.
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 648
Likes: 74
From: uk
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 995
Likes: 100
From: Botswana
Pay deal and career restructure marginally rejected, with the pilot workforce divided at virtually 50% in favour and against it. Only that union could achieve such a split. With a downturn around the corner and the oil crisis only getting worse this places the pilots bargaining power in a very marginal position. The members must now look at why reps delivered such a poor result.
As someone of more advanced years than I’d like who actually remembers I’m going to be 65 one day, I’d genuinely rather I remain on PP34 than that dogs dinner of a pay deal.
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 42
Likes: 28
From: Worldwide
Failing all candidates that dont have right to work...
They suddenly failed dozens of candidates during the last weeks of April, and right after that they removed the direct entry pilot ad. They also added a “right to work” requirement to the other job postings one by one. So basically, all candidates without the right to work were failed and made look like as if they had failed the interview process, without any explanation like “we are rejecting you for this reason.” Unbelievable.. what a waste of time...