Hi @B11 - welcome to the community. 
I read through your post, although I admit I did skip some of the detail. That said, given your skill set I think Knack would prove a great tool for a switch from Airtable.
Knacks strength are workflow portal based solutions combined with secure database relationships.
Multi user environments are a real strength too with user based roles adding security and flexibility.
Knack plays very nicely with Integromat, although you will need to use error handlers on the Knack modules.
I don’t have experience of Airtable as I came to Knack via Excel and Access. My college and fellow Knack Expert @JulianKirkness has used Airtable extensively so may wish to jump in with his thoughts and opinions.
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