Quote: "I don't think Manchester Airport is seen as being quite as regional as you make out. The key issue is that MAN already has strategic growth infrastructure in place.
MAN is the LHR of the local area in that it dominates and sucks in traffic from the catchement areas of LPL / LBA / NCL / GLA even, and it got the infrastructure in place to grow. It's not a serious contention that STN needs to grow or indeed SEN or even LCY by much, strategically it's LHR / LGW market driven growth driver we're trying to get kick started with more capacity."
Quote: "I think people get hung up on the term 'regional'. It's a very British, non aviation term and simply means an airport outside London. In that sense, whilst LBA, LPL don't come anywhere close to MAN, MAN is still a regional airport in the strictest sense. I don't like the term either but I think many are associating the term with the size of an airfield/facility which is misguided."
Quote: "Its a bit like that monty python sketch where they are stood in a line
John Cleese is Heathrow.I look up to him because......"
MAN is much more than a regional airport, it is a major European airport along with the likes of LGW, ORY, NCE, DUB, BCN, MUC, CPH, BRU, ZRH, VIE, etc., perhaps a little lower in the pecking order than MUC.
As for LHR, it is in a different league altogether i.e. the small group of world international airports, along with (in Europe) AMS, CDG, FRA and MAD.