Hi Helen - my two penn'eth....
Was it not years ahead of Bristol in providing these facilities and therefore why didn't the traffic gravitate to Cardeiff?
Yes, from a technical point of view, Cardiff has been a better bet than Bristol for a long time. But airlines don't care about that. So long as the airfield can handle what they want to operate there, that's fine. Everything over and above that is pretty pointless.
Is the poor surface access a significant barrier?
I don't think so. Consider the access to any number of other UK airports, that have done better than Cardiff. Bristol's is dreadful, doesn't seem to have stopped them growing.
Are the people of Wales not air/travel minded?
There is a statistic known as the 'propensity to fly' (PTF). It rates how likely a given population is to fly in a given period. South Wales does indeed have a low PTF - BUT it is a slightly warped statistic, since PTF is linked to opportunity to fly. What that means is that if I live ten minutes from Stansted, I am more likely to take off to say Berlin for the weekend than if I live in Llanelli.... and the number of people from Wales who use BHX or BRS tends to show that people will fly.
Has the economy failed to recover from the turmoils of the 80's?
Wales' problem here is the dependency on the state to provide jobs and services. Doesn't help, but being honest, doesn't seem to have held BFS and BHD back....
Are the dated terminal/poor terminal facilities unattractive to passengers (if not the airlines)?
Airlines don't care. Trust me. If the airlines were there, the passengers will rock up, and the airport will have revenue to improve things. And Cardiff is not that bad. Think of Bristol - crowded, built on the side of a hill, no jetways.... and yet....
Is it easier for operators to make a killing elsewhere?
Certainly, operators seem to think that they can make a killing elsewhere. Why has Baby shifted an aircraft to Northern Ireland? Because it looks like there are richer pickings there.
Is it a combination of these factors or are there just too many airports for this small island?
Too many airports? I don't think so, many are operating close to maximum capacity. This is why Heathrow falls apart quickly when things get tough - there is simply no slack in the system. It may be that the airports are in the wrong place of course...
TA