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Regional airlines now operate more than half of all flights nationally, according to the FAA.

"After 9/11, people stopped flying for a while, so the major airlines started contracting with smaller airlines," Belcher said. The trend escalated after fuel prices zoomed up in 2008, he said.

"At this point, every flight in the state of West Virginia is a regional airline flight except for AirTran out of Yeager and Allegiant Airlines in Huntington," Belcher said. Colgan alone bases at least 40 staffers in Charleston.

Regional airlines have received more public attention since, almost a year ago, a Continental Connection flight operated by Colgan Air crashed in icy weather as it approached Buffalo International Airport, killing 50 people in Colgan's first fatal incident.

Last Monday, after seven hours of delay, Colgan sent another plane from Dulles Airport to pick up the Charleston passengers.

"The [U.S. Airways] supervisor gave me a big hug," said passenger Morris Pike. "They were as upset about this as we are."

Pike had expected to drive home in the daylight to join his family after his wife died. He has night blindness, so US Airways staff at Reagan gave him a hotel voucher. His voucher turned out to be for a hotel in Charleston, S.C. Yeager staff switched it to West Virginia.