Carlisle Airport could serve not only Cumbria and The Lake District, but also Dumfries and Galloway. Although North West England no longer has a regional development agency, Scotland certainly does, and it would be interesting to know whether supporting regional development in South West Scotland could extend to promoting inward investment and businesses using Carlisle Airport as a gateway to D&G.
Instead of a link to the South East of England, I would have thought that a link to Manchester Airport would provide better transit options.