While I would accept LGS6753's analysis with PAXBoy's revisions, the real problem for smaller airfields is a culture within the industry that stifles real innovation. "Low fares" is not an innovation, no more than electronic ticketting - they're just tweaks to a deeply flawed system.
Real innovation comes from taking risks, and the aviation industry, from ground-level to 45000 feet is endemically risk-averse, so much so that the regulatory authorties insist on approving business plans before granting operating licenses.
Barriers to entry are so high, unnecessarily increased by layers of duplicitous and ineffectual beaurocracy, and brain-dead customers swaddled in so many protective guarantees, that it's next to impossible for any small company to bring real commercial creativity to the market.
Unfortunately, smaller airfields appear to have bought into the notion that they can only survive by offering exactly the same (miserable?) experience as multi-million passenger hubs. Vertical integration and open communication between the airport, small AOC holders and service providers in the catchment area is could easily help define a new identity and offer a real choice in the market.
That needs a lot of people to change a lot of bad habits, which won't be easy.