There's confusion as to the operation of the Kerry-Dublin flight.
This afternoon, the Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan announced that Ryanair would be taking over the service from July 19th.
Radio Kerry then contacted Ryanair for comment.The airline said Minister Ryan's statement was premature and inaccurate, and that no agreement had been concluded.
Last month, Stobart Air, which operated the Public Service Obligation routes in Kerry and Donegal on behalf of Aer Lingus Regional, collapsed.
The Government launched an emergency procurement process to restore the PSO on June 21st with a preferred bidder selected for the Donegal-Dublin PSO route.
This afternoon, Transport Minister Eamon Ryan announced that Ryanair is to operate the Kerry-Dublin flight for the next seven months and beyond.
His statement issued by his department said the airline has indicated it will operate the route on a commercial basis without the need for Government funding or PSO, and that it wouldn't be expected that there's a need for a competition for a longer PSO contract on the Kerry-Dublin route.
Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Hildegarde Naughton, issued this comment prior to Ryanair issuing its statement.
Radio Kerry News contacted Ryanair for a comment after the Government announcement.
Ryanair says while it's offered to operate a non-subsidised service on the Kerry-Dublin route, no agreement has yet been concluded and so Minister Ryan's statement of today - which Ryanair says it was not consulted on - is both premature and inaccurate.
