Well, to show you why I like propeller airplanes (turboprop or not) so much:



(For details, please consult Vol. 44, No 9, Air Classics)

Long live propeller aircraft of any sort. And maybe I'm a little "old school"...

I rode a Mesa -8-200 (I think it was a -200, although all I remember is the tail number being N801HA or something ending in 1HA) from DRO to PHX a month or so ago. For ops like that, I prefer it to an RJ. It was 37C in Durango and, while the airplane wasn't full, it was 75% or greater with big heavy bags in back. No problem at all.

Too, there's a reason why outfits like Era in Alaska don't have any jets. When all the regionals got orgasmic about the RJ and unloaded their turboprops, Era snapped up a few -100s. It's arguably the only airplane that can do the mission that Era serves.

Also: the smartest regional carrier I know of is ditching their CRJs and going to all Q400s. Now, I'm not privy to the inner goings-on at Horizon, although I suspect that they have figured out that most RJs just aren't worth it for the missions they fly. (Consider SkyWest's Durango operation: it's CRJs to SLC and DEN. Isn't that overkill?)