Ryanair has told a group of its pilots that they have until Wednesday to accept the company's terms if they want to be trained to fly its new aircraft.

In a letter sent to the pilots last week, Ryanair told the eight senior pilots and eight junior co-pilots that they were being given "one final opportunity" to accept its proposals.

The letter was the third written offer to be made to the pilots in a dispute over Ryanair's new fleet of Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

The pilots are unhappy about being asked to sign a €15,000 bond which would make them liable for the costs of their training if Ryanair is forced to negotiate with unions within five years of their signing a new contract.

The pilots are members of the Irish Airline Pilots' Association (IALPA).

Ryanair says it will "have no option" but to offer the training to other pilots if its proposals are rejected.

The Wednesday deadline on the matter comes in the middle of a legally charged period for Ryanair.

The Labour Court is due to hear a case taken by the IALPA on the matter of the pilots' contracts later this week, against a backdrop where Ryanair contends that the airline is not compelled to negotiate with any trade union.

The airline is also due in court today as part of its efforts to reveal the identity of pilots posting messages on the Ryanair European Pilots' Association (REPA) website.

The website, which allowed pilots to post messages under codenames, had provided a forum for criticism of the low-fares airline.

Ryanair will also feature in the High Court tomorrow when one of its pilots, John Goss, applies for an order for the committal to prison of the airline's chief executive, Michael O'Leary.

Mr Goss claims that Mr O'Leary and Ryanair's head of flight and ground operations, David O'Brien, were in contempt of court when they purported to suspend him last week.