BALPA’s General Secretary, Jim McAuslan, commented; ‘Today our thoughts are with all the dedicated bmi baby pilots and staff who worked to make the airline a success over many years and who are now struggling to find employment.  But although the last flights may have taken off, BALPA will continue to support our members to ensure they get justice and find good quality jobs as soon as possible.  

‘Pilots are not to blame for this closure and have continued to operate professionally and safely with the threat of redundancy looming. But they have been badly let down on many fronts.  Employees are now left as the ones “holding the baby”. 

‘Lufthansa has let pilots down by keeping us at arm’s length from would-be buyers, pressing us to accept cuts in pay and conditions with the false hope of a promising future, and even accepting training payments from pilots joining the company earlier this year. 

‘The new management is letting pilots down, and although BA always made it clear that bmi baby did not fit into their business plan and would be closed, it has taken an extremely parsimonious approach to redundancy payments, done nowhere near enough to provide people with a future in British Airways itself, and even refused to write off the training bonds provided by new pilots. We have recently met the BA Chief Executive and hope that our description of the plight these pilots are facing may mean a change of stance.