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"This does directly impact on the recruitment of frontline staff as well as cabin crew and, to a lesser extent, flight crews. At a time of recession like this, management positions are the first ones to go, especially in those departments which are not seen as ‘core'."

Tasc has advised a wide range of the region's leading airlines including Etihad, Qatar Airways, Emirates and Turkish Airlines on all aspects of aviation management and Ponjevic believes that the recession could place them in quite a strong position when it comes to recruiting.

"Because of the number of people being let go in the western part of the world, you have access to a much larger pool of professionals who are keenly looking for new placements," he points out. "The Middle East will be one of their first focus areas and so the airlines will have a far wider and better quality candidate base to choose from."

Ponjevic's optimistic stance could place airlines in a precarious win-win situation. "Whether it is a right time to recruit or not depends on whether the airline decides to continue expanding or slows down and plays the waiting game," he says. While it may seem unthinkable that airlines should be actively recruiting at the moment, Ponjevic points to Etihad's recent announcement as an example.

In March of this year, Abu Dhabi's national carrier, Etihad Airways stated that it would continue growing its workforce by 5% annually in spite of the current financial uncertainty. Neither redundancies nor recruitment freezes have a place on Etihad's future agenda and such confidence in uncertain times is admirable. However, for other airlines in the region, the cautious approach remains prevalent.

For neighbouring national airline, Emirates, some strategic recruitment changes have been essential. "The current economic climate has prompted many airlines (including ourselves) to re-assess business strategy and recruitment needs for the future," says Emirates Airlines vice president recruitment Rick Helliwell.

This re-assessment has resulted in a decision to significantly reduce the number of new staff Emirates' is employing across its business units this year and starting from May the Dubai airline will offer cabin crew up to six months unpaid leave.

For those still hoping for a career with the leading airline, it is not all doom and gloom as some recruitment will continue. With Emirates due to take delivery of 18 new passenger aircraft in the coming financial year, Helliwell accepts that recruitment for operationally and commercially essential positions will take place unabated.

Indeed, he is keen to emphasise that the core of Emirates' recruitment strategy will remain the same as in the past, focusing on building a strong global employment brand and as part of its recruitment strategy, Emirates has long been committed to recruiting UAE nationals into challenging and rewarding jobs in the airline industry. "In the last seven or so years the demographics of Dubai have changed so that we can source talent and hire quality personnel both locally as well as from abroad," says Helliwell.

With the Middle East ever keen to attract its own homegrown talent into the aviation sector, could this mean a tighter squeeze on positions for expatriates? Ponjevic thinks this is unlikely. "Expatriates continue to dominate the industry due to their expertise levels," he says.

For now, at least, the future for aviation recruitment in the Middle East still appears to hold potential. How long this will last remains to be seen. "We have been fortunate not to have seen a major airline fold here, and hopefully this will not happen," says Ponjevic.

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