AS an airline shareholder, I have been following the current railway industrial dispute in the south of England with some interest. It seems the bone of contention between unions and management is the safety function of guards – a function which the employers claim is used so infrequently that it doesn't make economic sense to retain.

In terms of passenger mile per accident, this is undoubtedly equally true when it comes to airline cabin staff. If Southern Railways are successful in their bid to cut costs in this way, can we look forward to the UK airline industry being able to similarly save by replacing trolly dollies with recorded announcements of "brace, brace"?

John Eoin Douglas,

7 Spey Terrace, Edinburgh.