Re: MANCHESTER
Bagso - Your assertion that the North-West has a "massive" Indian population is not quite correct, but the misunderstanding is a common one. Because we are encouraged to refer to people originating from the sub-continent as "Asians" it is easy to lose sight of the reality. The North-West actually has a "massive" population of Pakistanis and a healthy population of Bengalis [Bangladesh], but Indians really do favour the Midlands. These ethnic groups are not randomly dispersed around the UK; immigrants from specific regions of the sub-continent like to settle in the towns made familiar by their preceeding kinsfolk. Hence Manchester Airport is particularly well served by flights to Pakistan (which do very well) but continues to provide a relatively unattractive prospect for Indian carriers compared to airports in the Midlands.
Personally, I think we would all be far better informed if PC types did not insist on promoting the "Asian" tag. We would have much greater understanding of the very different Indian / Pakistani / Bengali cultures if we were encouraged to recognise them as such. When I am introduced to an "Asian" I want to know whether to try out my Turkish, Buryat, Cantonese, Mongolian, Arabic or Urdu ... we never face the problem of being introduced to a "European" after all!
Humour aside, if we are to truly understand ethnic minorities (and the air travel markets they represent), it is a good start not to be coy about recognising them as who they really are and where they actually originate from.
Not too controversial for the forum I trust ...
SHED.