madbadrob - they are just 2 different animals. Unfortunately for you, airports don't exist to service spotters and "enthusiasts" - they exist to make money (and they aren't going to make much out of spotters, are they? Not even a cup of tea, I shouldn't think, as they'll all have their thermos with them). I travel on business. A lot. HUY is convenient, easy check in and throughput and allows me to get to SFO, LAX, NYC, IAD, KUL, TPE, HAM, MAD, CDG, TLS, GVA, MNL, SEA - in fact extremely easily anywhere on the KLM, Northwest and Malaysian networks. Hassle free, through check in, bags all the way to the destination. That is something that I value much more than whether I can get to Palma with easy or somewhere not very close to Frankfurt with Ryan. It is that that HUY offers me and it is that that business people will pay a premium for. Usually our time is expensive and precious and as the alternative way to get to these places involves at least a 4 hour trip to London, give me HUY every time.
There is a place for both of these airports and both will, I'm sure, survive. HUY DOES need a lo co but it doesn't need to spoil what it already has, which it would do by over expansion (who in the hell enjoys Luton or Stansted or even NEMA?)