Response to MV....part 2
I agree with HZ123 in most areas, and have worked for a BA Franchisee with a jet/tp mix.
Turboprops are undoubtedly cheaper to operate (in the right hands) than the equivalent sized jet. If you look at the history of Brymon, CityFlyer, Manx, etc., paying turboprop-level salaries, then there is no competition for marginal routes such as channel islands, PLH, IOM, etc. The fuel burn on an ATR or Dash 8 is virtually nil! The yields on these routes may often be low, but the costs are lower!
However, as soon as the likes of BA start operating these types, they start having to pay turboprop pilots the same salaries as jet pilots. I do not mean this to degenerate into a debate of this point, and personally I believe tp's can be harder to operate than jets. However, a TP will never have the same earning power as a jet.
Equally the TP market is (nowadays) limited. There are still some ideal TP routes out there, but increasingly there is jet competition on the same or parallel routes, and people will pay the premium to fly on the jet.
Summary: Put a TP on the right route, with the right (regional) operator, and it can be a winner. Nowadays in the hands of BA (or other mainline airlines), and on routes with competition from jets, and the TP days are numbered.
In trim