UK’s Jet2 confirms 102 pilot job losses

Jet2 (LS, Leeds/Bradford) has confirmed a plan to make 102 pilots redundant across most of its bases, the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) said in a statement on August 16. The leisure specialist issued a preliminary notice to BALPA in June informing it of the plan, which it said had to be implemented due to a “reassessment and reduction” of its flight programme for the remainder of 2020 and for 2021 as covid-19 continues to disrupt travel. The airline said it was “greatly distressed” and “deeply regrets” the cuts, which have been “entirely caused by the current situation.” The union insisted that Jet2 was pressing ahead with the cuts despite a range of alternative options it had put forward. These options included part-time working, part-year working, unpaid leave, sabbaticals, and voluntary redundancies, a union spokesperson told Sky News. BALPA general secretary Brian Strutton said the announcement “is yet another [case] which shows the desperate state of the British aviation sector. Despite enormous efforts to work with Jet2 to find ways of saving these jobs, the airline is insisting on 102 redundancies.” He added: “This will be a particular kick in the teeth as many of those who may lose their jobs had recently joined the airline after having been dismissed from Thomas Cook Group, which went into administration last year.” Strutton called for more government support for the industry, whose changes to quarantine rules “keep throwing every restart plan into chaos. If these quarantines are really needed, the government must stump up support to help the airline industry, which is doing its best to get back on track but keeps being knocked back at every juncture.” Leeds/Bradford-based Jet2 operates bases in the United Kingdom at Belfast Int’l, Birmingham Int’l, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow Int’l, London Stansted, Manchester Int’l, and Newcastle, GB airport, as well as Alicante and Tenerife Sur airport in Spain. In early August, the low-cost carrier ramped up its capacity to Greece and Turkey after deciding to cancel all flights to Spain due to the British government’s abrupt reimposition of quarantine rules on July 26. It has also extended the suspension of its Algarve programme to August 24, despite earlier hopes it could restart flights and holidays to the Portuguese destination on August 16.