Paully
I do not think Beagle was trolling. I used to fly in and out of there many times with BMI on the LHR shuttle in the 80,s, but in winter I would stay away due to the weather, like we have currently got, which then normally would end up with a trip to Teeside or Manchester. I gave up, and to be honest and would not go back either. I also had a windswept landing at Manchester today, but its not on top of a hill with a runway pointing the wrong way so no big thing !.
As for all this talk of new rail links and motorways I think somebody started celebrating too early and got carried away. There is no money or appetite for a rail or road link. The airports too small, in the wrong place, and at the wrong height, never mind the runway direction. The majority of its catchment areas population can easily reach Manchester or East Midlands, or in the North of the region Teeside or Newcastle. There is not the critical mass required. You may want an airport the size of Manchester but it is not going to happen. A better plan would be to shut it, and move it to East of Leeds where you could point the runway in the right direction and have good rail and road links but I would still doubt you would get the passenger numbers of Man.
Regards
Mr Mac