Mrs Starmer is now expecting another child

BA is appealing against the ruling in favour of Jessica Starmer, from Dorset, who fought her employer for more time with her one-year-old daughter Beth.

BA told the Employment Appeal Tribunal it had refused her request to cut her hours by 50% on safety grounds alone.

BA said Mrs Starmer had not clocked up enough flying hours to go part-time.

The company told the tribunal hearing in London that its pilots should have at least 2,000 flying hours before reducing their hours to 50%, which would be about eight days a month for Mrs Starmer.

'Huge concerns'

Mrs Starmer, 26, from Wareham, won a claim for indirect sex discrimination at an employment tribunal in April.

Christopher Jeans, QC, representing BA, told the appeal tribunal that the airline had "huge concerns" about the approach of the original tribunal to safety.

He said BA was sympathetic to people with childcare requirements.

The tribunal's chairman, Mr Justice Burton, said BA had not brought in the 2,000 hours requirement until five months after the original request by Mrs Starmer to work part-time.

He said therefore that it could not be a basis for the appeal and instead BA would have to show that its refusal to grant part-time working was justified and not discriminatory.

John Cavanagh QC, representing Mrs Starmer, said BA had been given its chance at the original tribunal hearing and should not be given a second opportunity.

Mr Jeans told the three members of the tribunal that the original decision had caused "enormous concern" throughout the airline industry.

Mrs Starmer's union, the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), put forward a compromise plan to BA on Monday to prevent the appeal going ahead, but was unsuccessful.