RYANAIR has claimed that its planned service between Dublin and Kerry will only be viable if both airports cut their passenger charges.

The airline confirmed on Wednesday morning that it will operate the Kerry-Dublin route on a commercial basis from July 28. It had formerly operated as a taxpayer-funded public service obligation (PSO) route, receiving just under €4m a year in Exchequer funding.

Stobart Air, which flew under contract as Aer Lingus Regional, had been flying the PSO service. Stobart Air collapsed last month, however.

That prompted the Government to seek temporary operators for the route and the only other PSO air service in Ireland, which is between Dublin and Donegal. Tenders to operate the PSO routes for four years were to be sought later in the year.

However, Ryanair wrote to the Department of Transport saying it would operate the Dublin-Kerry route on a commercial basis, meaning there would be no need for a PSO tender competition.

But Ryanair and the Department engaged in a public disagreement last week after the Government issued a statement saying that Ryanair had agreed to fly the Dublin-Kerry service from July 19 on a commercial basis.

Ryanair immediately issued a statement insisting that no such final agreement had been reached. The Department of Transport then publicly released correspondence between it and Ryanair DAC chief executive Eddie Wilson, which indicated the carrier was prepared to start operating the service from July 19.

Up to early on Wednesday morning, the Ryanair website was not showing any seats for sale on a Dublin-Kerry route.

The Irish Independent queried Ryanair as to whether it had ditched its plan to fly the service. An hour later, the airline issued a press release stating it would operate it from July 28.

The decision by Ryanair to operate the route without any subsidy means that Conor McCarthy’s fledgling carrier, Emerald Airlines, will be effectively squeezed out of any plans it might have had to fly the route. It was almost certain to have tendered to operate the route as a PSO service.

But Ryanair will operate a 189-seat Boeing 737 jet on the route, as opposed to the smaller capacity ATR turboprop aircraft that Stobart Air had flown and which Emerald Airlines would also operate.

Donegal Airport, meanwhile, has a relatively short runway that can’t accommodate commercial passenger jets, while even larger turboprop ATR aircraft need to be modified before they can use it.

Ryanair will initially operate one return service a day on the Dublin-Kerry route, increasing it to a double-daily service from September 1. Tickets will be priced from €19.99.

“To make this commercial service viable, we will need lower costs at Kerry and Dublin airports as recommended by the Government’s Aviation Task Force, which still remains unactioned by Transport Minister Eamon Ryan more than 12 months after it was submitted to him by his own Aviation Taskforce,” claimed Mr Wilson.