Aer Lingus could possibly leave the Republic of Ireland and move its operations to London or Belfast, in a move to cut costs and stave off union problems.

According to a recent magazine article, the airline has already applied to the UK’s civil aviation authority for a UK operating license, meaning the airline could legally move its corporate headquarters to Belfast or London.

The move would allow the airline to start over and force workers to apply again for their positions under the new Aer Lingus UK rubric.

Presently, the airline is in tough negotiations with unions to slash 676 jobs through voluntary redundancies, with the company reportedly requiring $150 million in savings by the end of 2011 to stay afloat.

Aer Lingus has warned that if it did not get the labour cuts by November 30th, it would look at a different plan to shrink the airline with compulsory layoffs and a cut back in the number of routes flown.

Aer Lingus has a huge problem with long-haul pilots, who make up to $500,000 a year flying the Atlantic route and have golden pension plans as well.  In comparison, Ryanair pilots make only half that.

By moving its headquarters to Belfast or London Gatwick, the airline could force all those pilots to reapply to the new entity; however it is still to be seen if such a drastic move would be necessary.