A Dispatch Perspective
Thought i'd add to this,
I'm a Dispatcher for Swissport at NCL and we have both types operating (146 to EXT and the Q400 to BHD and SOU).
The 146 is a bi*ch to turnaround in comparison to the dash -
No Airstairs means it's a pain in the ass getting ours on the aircraft quickly and correctly without the c/crew complaining that there's a 2cm gap and that they want them repositioned. These then have to be removed if there are WCHR pax to board from the cabin lift.
As for the cabin, I find the q400 light and airy and far less cramped than the 146, lets not forget the 146 is 6 abreast seating the only a/c in its category with more than 5. The cabin is dark and dingy and god forbid if you're sat under the wing with the laughable overhead baggage bins there, usefull for maybe an A4 folder to fit into. These are also the emergency exits so forget about the seat infront for your bag.
The Q400 does take getting used to but after a couple of turnarounds it's easy as p*ss.
The pax figures on the EXT service don't at the moment exceed the Q400 capacity so maybe FlyBE will redeploy the a/c to a more suitable sector and save us the headache.
Rant over,
Sharky