I may be a little biased, as I've been campaigning for the return of the LHR route for some time and consequently, I want to see it brought back whatever the cost. However, the point I would make is that smaller communities, particularly island communities which obviously have no road/rail links, have to go out into the market and hustle. If airlines like Flybe can change the way they operate to suit the new market, airports and communities should be allowed to do so also. Stopping them from doing so and tying their hands and restricting them is fundamentally unfair.
A sustainable economy for a community like Jersey depends on enticing new carriers and for a small community to do so, it needs to be generous in the incentives it provides. I think this is particularly the case in relation to LHR; the UK govt is wilfully blind to the needs of smaller communities, by considering London as one market and therefore, not understanding the importance of connectivity through LHR (as compared to say LTN or STN); in an Open Skies environment, I see some peripheral UK markets losing their links.
If the govts don't recognise the reality of how important access to major hubs is and if the EU tries to prohibit govt owned airports from offering good deals, then it seems the deck is stacked very much against more peripheral communities - and in favour of wealthier and more profitable destinations. I certainly don't see that as an acceptable or fair situation and I think the Jersey authorities are perfectly right to do whatever they need to do to put on the map and make us more accessible.