Rimfires and air rifles both have advantages and drawbacks that can fit certain areas and situations. Noise, expense, range limitations, safety factors and even the challenge aspect. I live in Alabama and examples might be like if I chose to go hunt over in Bankhead Forest where I might need to walk long distances and possibly fire quite a few shots, well away from an air source, longer shots possible, noise not going to bother anyone and homes miles away, I would probably choose to carry my Kimber Hunter 22. It's light weight, accurate and if I needed to I could carry several hundred rounds of cartridges with me without a lot of weight to consider. Other places I might hunt closer to home could be shorter hunts, closer shots, homes in closer proximity, less shot opportunities, spookier squirrels, etc., in which case an air rifle could make more sense. Some folks just like a different challenge to spice things up a bit. There's not really a competition between firearms and air weapons for hunting and shooting, they're complementary to each other, filling roles where one might be a bit hard pressed to meet.
