azingrew wrote:There is an interesting and animated thread on the " avoidance of the american public of TP" on airliners.net. Lots of pros and cons ( monstly con though). A few guys raise the subject of the perception the general public has on TP's and it confirms what I said somewhere here above: In my experience as a former travel agent, I can guarantie you that the general public does not like TP's and some people would even go to great length to avoid them. Propeller are often associated with "old" no matter how modern they are.
Many people would rather sit on a ratling 737-200 rather than a new TP. It might be absurd, but that's what it is.
Just a quick quote from someone on the airliners thread which I found interesting:
"Tprops are cheaper is a very broad statement If you mean operationally, then yes on shorter routes less than 500nm as a baseline, they are usually cheaper to operate than an RJ because they burn less fuel and the stage length time on such a short flight is negligible between the Q400/ATR-72, etc vs. the Rj. But when you start going past that range, the savings are negligible because of the slower cruise speed of a tprop."
So, to sum it up, my thoughts on a massive TP order at SN is that it ain't gonna happen.
Absolutely true. Many, many people avoid airlines flying turboprops!
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