Also, the Colgan crash really set the turboprop back in the public's mindset and made them believe that less experienced pilots were flying them in the first place. Believe me, when I flew the Q I didn't want to believe it either, but like I said it's night and day difference in passengers. Even if their logic is complete BS.

I'm glad I could participate in derailing this thread, but I've lost interest in this silliness.

BTW, the guy that said C5 can barely keep their current planes up and running... well, yeah... that.

Unfortunately, just because an airline couldn't keep up with their current flying doesn't mean they wouldn't go for a lot more.

What passengers really hate and complain about is being told that their 50 seat ERJ can only take 41 people. No worries, the next flight is a jet that leaves...tomorrow.

In the last year at Express, I can think of 1 time that we were weight restricted. Out of MCI to DEN, carrying an alternate, 20 or so military guys who check 15+ heavy bags and maxed out our cargo bin. We took 10 bags out and they sent them on a flight an hour later and we went out full.

Why bother leasing to financially strapped US regionals?
Bombardier Q400 NextGen Airliner Heads to Calgary for WestJet Visit - MarketWatch

My money is on Chuck Jr. and company buying the certificate back. ;)

I am pretty sure PDT could ramp up to operate the Q but it will never happen so I might as well have never posted.

Again you have not been paying attention. Though Congress recently voted for extending EAS subsidies that expire in 2013 out to 2015, they also restricted new entrants - meaning no new EAS contracts. Additionally, part of the extension agreement was to allow carriers that currently have EAS contracts to drop out of those contracts in 2013 if they wish without penalty. The industry is NOT trending back in the way you suggest. As a whole it is downsizing. Delta, US Airways both due to financial concerns and the slot swap will be ceasing regional service into as many as 30 markets over the next 10 to 12 months. Delta has also pulled out of every EAS market where it's EAS contract allowed it to do so.

The reality is that the economics of this industry no long support scheduled air carrier service into small town America. The "hub and spoke" system of the airline industry as it stands today is simply not economically sustainable and it is going through significant downsizing right now. This is not a guess or an opinion, this IS happening. The nonsensical city pairs you refer too are that way due to contractual requirements. If anything this should tell you that the factors behind airframe selection on certain routes is a far more complex issue then fuel burn.

The other issue you have working against you is that turboprop technology has matured. TPs are not going to get any more efficient then they already are and Turbofan technology is rapidly closing the gap of fuel burn between the two power plant types. It was simply inevitable that TP's would eventually see their end in US pax service. Though they will certainly carry on in small numbers for several more years what you will not see is an expansion of TP's at any carrier.

Westjets first airplanes were old SWA planes... I think they would go for used cheap planes, over new From the factory...