I got a ticket for my girlfriend to fly sligo dublin at the weekend...i booked it 3 hours before the flight and the plane was empty!!!!
I know the pso keeps it going but she said there were only 3 people on the flight by the time it took off...talk about making a loss...
The flight was still 133 euros return...it was too much and the fares seem to be going up..or is my imagination....
I did a return trip on Dublin Sligo and the plane wasn't empty either time. Loadfactors seemed to be 25-50%. I thought the whole point of the PSO is to absorb any potential operational losses in order to ensure the service is provided at no loss to the carrier to the pre-defined conditions.
I got the route for €60 return about 2 weeks in advance.