Sigh. You just answered your own question. Mainline's already lost the flying. We're trying to get the flying BACK at mainline so guys like you and me don't get stuck at a regional. The Q isn't gonna help that. Think why the mainline guys lost the flying to regionals. Frequency. Same number of seats, but with twice as many flights now. So, they can offer more departure times to snag more passengers. They weren't running with a full 737-200 at 8 AM, so they toss an RJ on at 8 AM and 10 am, and they filled 'em both up. Net result, more money.
I'd like to see mainline take back flying like MEM-DFW, MEM-ATL, etc, etc. Those are routes that that uneconomical 50 seater coulda been pulled for an MD-80 or a 737. Instead, the Q comes along, and the flying is back stuck at the regional level. Ir's not existing routes I'm worried about, it's bettering the profession. The Q makes it harder on that level. On another note, I'm not entirely trustworthy of the management at my airline not to use Colgan's Qs to whipsaw us on the jets. After all, the contracts with Delta and NWA are with Pinnacle HOLDINGS.