INTERNATIONAL Airlines Group’s eye-watering half-year results, posted yesterday, underline yet again the appalling inequality at the heart of our national flag carrier.

But while the City pops the champagne, even the traders must be concerned at the increasingly acrimonious dispute involving members of British Airways’ mixed fleet cabin crew.

While striking Unite members survive on strike pay and supplies from the foodbank set up at the Bedfont FC clubhouse, the €975 million profits made by BA’s parent company in six months — a rise of nearly 40 per cent — were, apparently, insufficient to pay them more than the original 6p an hour extra in the original pay offer, in an effort to end the industrial action.

Instead, BA, which made an operating profit of €742m in the six months, up from €631m in 2016, is stepping up its corporate bullying, punishing our members for taking lawful industrial action and robbing them of hard-earned bonuses that are vital to workers who take home a basic salary of just over £12,000.

Dennis Skinner once likened airports to the “pits of the future” in terms of trade union strength and solidarity, along with the determination of employers to break trade unionists in airlines. Clearly IAG boss Willie Walsh is still pursuing his long-term desire to smash Unite.

He won’t succeed, of course. But we know all too well what we are up against — a deeply intransigent employer, as those of us who remember the 1997 dispute and all those since, understand.

However, the 1,500 mixed fleet members currently on strike, who are being punished for their previous walkouts in their fight for a living wage without strings, are young and have been hardened by this dispute.

They are determined to stand up to the sanctions being imposed on them by unbending bosses more prepared to allow the reputation of a great British brand to be smeared than to treat their lowest-paid crew with respect.

Imposing poverty pay and withdrawing bonuses is not a good look when your company makes such huge profits and your top executive receives millions of pounds in bonuses, share awards and other benefits, on top of his generous basic salary.

It is, as shadow transport minister Andy McDonald said, obscene in the extreme that anyone can derive that level of income from being part of the same organisation as workers on such low pay.

The profits announced yesterday will barely be dented by what Unite members are asking for.

Yet BA has dug in, preferring to defend unfairness and spend millions on hiring aircraft from other airlines while trying to bribe strikers back to work with £250 bungs, than to listen to what its staff, politicians and, increasingly, stalwart customers are telling it.

We welcome John McDonnell’s pledge that the next Labour government will legislate to stop airlines “wet” leasing planes, pilots and cabin crew from other carriers to cover strikers.

BA’s use of Qatar Airways, a company that ignores International Labour Organisation conventions on workers’ rights, has been one of the most scandalous aspects of the mixed fleet dispute and Unite has launched legal action against the government’s decision to allow it.

And now BA is facing legal action too for what we believe to be the illegal blacklisting of trade unionists.

By deducting bonuses and removing concessionary travel from those on strike, the employer has gone well beyond its ability to legally deduct the relevant days’ pay.

BA has clearly identified employees who have taken part in trade union activities and has, in effect, created a “list” of those to whom sanctions (BA calls it “consequences”) apply.

The airline’s heavy-handedness is undoubtedly backfiring. Among the striking crew there is a renewed determination and solidarity. They have been buoyed by the support they’ve received from the public and politicians and we’ve seen almost unrivalled membership participation, innovative campaigning and highly effective communications.

The dispute is exposing the race to the bottom on terms and conditions in the aviation industry.

Walsh justified the slashing of pay and conditions, during 2010’s bitter struggle, by claiming that BA faced such intense competition that it could no longer “afford” to offer cabin crew a fair wage and a decent career.

Clearly today’s news that the airline has generated another pile of cash makes a nonsense of that claim.

This is why Unite must link up our cabin crew membership together across airlines in minimum standards campaigns, so no airline can compete by driving down pay across the industry.

MPs were shocked when member after member described their working conditions and the creative ways BA is using to get around paying them the minimum wage, including by including food allowances, during a mass lobby of Parliament.

But they were impressed by the clearly deepening resolve of those sharing their stories of living on Pot Noodles and tins of tuna when not flying, sleeping overnight in their cars for want of enough money to pay for petrol to get home and losing incentive pay for being unable to fly due to sickness.

Our mixed fleet members aren’t greedy. They just want to be able to provide the best and safest service they can and be paid a liveable wage for doing so.

• Pete Kavanagh is Unite London and Eastern secretary.