Nice to see a bit of common sense being spoken on the CWL thread ! I remember being taken to CWL as a young lad in the early 80s and there being not a single departure on the board for that day ! (The doughnut was nice though). I also remember operating from CWL in the late 90s early noughties when a summer saturday almost looked like a proper airport. CWL seems to have extreme cycles of use going back to the 60s feast or famine. As Bill Clinton rightly said "it's the economy stupid" and it is ! When the good times roll again (hopefully) the departure boards will start to fill up.
I understand the frustrations of some of those trying to turn things round. Not all the positive thinkers on here are "spotters" or "school boys" some people are campaigning because their jobs are genuinely at risk if the downward spiral continues. The airport owners have decided, for whatever reason, they can not give access away. But even if they did offer it for nothing would someone like Jet 2 come anyway in the current climate ? It is a good get out for them to say "too expensive" instead of "too poor". They may well want to come in a couple of years time why offend your future customers.
As for APD there are a few issues that probably make it meaningless. The WAG don't yet have control of it and may not ever. Secondly, even if they did, it is the assumptiuon being made on these forums is that they would abolish it. BIG BIG assumption. At best they may cut a couple of quid, not enough to cause a big queue of english people at the severn bridge tolls and at worst they may even raise it ! Remember the WAG, BBC Wales and the Welsh Enviromentalists , whatever the cover story, are actually all run by the same 50 people all living in Pontcanna and deciding they know best. Can't see the sandle wearers of the Peoples Liberation Party (WAG / BBC Wales / WLS) standing for a cut in any enviromental related tax.
(Before I get a racist bullet I am Welsh and I have lived and worked amongst the Pontcanna elite !)