Originally Posted by
rickair7777
Airways seems to be on to a pretty good racket here...they get their regionals to pay THEM for the privilege of doing their flying

Sorry to burst your bubble. RAH isn't paying Airways for flying in return. They are making a nearly garanteed investment. RAH is loaning money out to airlines for the future returns. A flying contract may be part of it in some cases, but not all. RAH will get their money back and a lot more with these airlines in the form of cash and/or other assets.