LHR Deterrent Hub
Spot on, gents - as a pilot on short- and long-haul based LHR for 6 years and frequent flyer/air commuter into 'the building site with 2 runways and 4.5 terminals attached' I have huge sympathy with the 'customer' - especially when they have to endure the place often as with many prem pax.
Much of their travelling time is extracted from sleeping hours/ time at home with family and I can only think of a single positive contribution that the BAA & HMG have made in recent years to their plight: the IRIS trial - sadly a mere drop in the ocean compared to all the DISadvantages inflicted upon the very people whose efforts make a huge contribution to Euro/UK economies...
LHR especially is the greatest hub-deterrent outside the US, even though it is not exposed to the weather assaults that occur across the Atlantic.
Reiterating, 2012 looms large on the horizon - the perceptions stated above that many groups of travellers will avoid LHR as far as possible says it all really. If only HMG could be held to account... DO GET A GRIP!