By the (il)logic of this, no one would ever fly on any Boeing, Airbus, ATR, BAE, Bombardier, Embraer or any other airplane.

That, coupled with the complete lack of objective evidence that people are in any way avoiding the Q400, renders these sweeping statements absurd.

The general public is not afraid of the Q400--they are afraid, inherently, of flying in general. That's why you always have these statements after every accident, where the exact cause is not immediately known, that "passengers are refusing to fly on the _______" You can fill in the blank with any transport aircraft built in the last eighty years.