virginblue,
Nevertheless, the fact remains that reality in 2017 is that 1980s/1990s style regional flying is literally non-existent. Someone else has listed all what remains of the regional airline industry in the UK and explained why all these operations only work because of some very special circumstances (PSOs, monopoly through qirport ownership etc.)
How about they work, or can work, because of catchment area, lack of airport facilities etc?
Plymouth was one example, OK as I've previously mentioned ASW should have been ideally offering the population of Cornwall and west Devon with direct services operated by a smaller aircraft type but ASW were doing OK, they were stitched up when their owner decided that selling land for real estate was more important than operating an airport and airline.
Were Plymouth open today there would surely be a puddle jumper operation operating there, probably making a modest profit whilst gaining popularity for offering the catchment area a 'cottage industry' air service.
Just reading these past 24 hours regarding the IOM to BLK & GLO rumour just serves to prove my point, these routes would be lost were we to merely operate aircraft of 50+ seats, the IOM to BHD route has overnight increased from less than 20 seats to more than 30 seats, I don't know Citywing's load factors on this and other routes, nor how many times they may have operated daily or weekly, but will such routes prove to be viable when operated only once daily and with the increased capacity, i.e. can the operator round up enough punters at their given time of day to make the flight(s) profitable!
As for Glasgow - there are, I think, four possible options: Obviously Loganair, Aer Lingus doing a W-pattern with one of its ATRs on the DUB, ORK, SNN-routes, Easyjet with a low frequency, BRS-style service or Flybe with a Q400. Given the relatively low traffic volume, Loganair probably would be the smartest choice to guarantee some useful frequency.
You see ... You agree with me
I find your insinuation that apparently all investors and aviation professionals are dimwits as they refuse to engage in regional flying not terribly convincing.
I never said nor insinuated anything of the sort, I was an aviation professional myself for 35 years, why would I be calling myself a dimwit?
If you insist that regional flying is still an attractive market segment,
By your reckoning with the advent of major supermarkets, often out of town supermarkets, there is no, or there is to be no, place for local convenience stores.
Convenience stores shall continue to survive because they offer a service to their local catchment area particularly if the customer only wants a pint of milk and a loaf of bread, these can be bought cheaper at the supermarket but they can't be @ssed to go out of their way to save a modest amount of money, they're prepared to pay more for the convenience of their local retailer.
Sure Tesco is a much more attractive market segment but there's a living to be made from the convenience stores also, there are places in the market for both as there are places in the airline market for more than one model of operator.
You don't need to preach to me regarding low cost operations, these days I'm a self-employed hotelier of a 10 room Inn, I'm a low cost operator offering rooms cheaper than I know my competitors can or will match or improve upon, the @ss that I bought this land from is also a self-employed hotelier attempting to sell his rooms for three times the price, his place is invariably empty whilst my place is invariably full and he simply doesn't understand how I can be making money
Anyway, let's put this exchange of opinions to bed please