Surely it's an economic matter. When the 747 commenced operation, LHR and others were upgraded so that they could retain their position as the most attractive airports. The same will happen for the A380. If someone wants to reject a facility upgrade on the principle that it doesn't serve the national interest, good luck to them. It is their right. However, they may find that they start to lose market share.
ManagedNav
And yes, it is painful to see an inferior aircraft manufacturer in front merely because of it's cost-effectiveness....
How are Airbus inferior? You mean like McDonalds? I can cook a better hamburger than McDonalds (personal opinion) but it doesn't mean that I could compete with them in a business sense. I prefer Boeing to Airbus (personal opinion), but that doesn't mean that buying Boeing is necessarily better in a business sense. That's the nature of life....
Cheers,
LP