The race to the bottom on prices is astonishing. I have an old Manx Airlines ticket for a special "Farecracker" flight to LPL in 1992 which gave me the privileged fare of £78 rtn.
I have a EZY RTN to BRS at the end of April which has cost me £48. From LPL it would cost me £48 in fuel to drive to Bristol, let alone the ferry fare to get me to LPL in the first place. Pricing like that can't be sustainable and its little wonder that smaller operators find it tough.
That said, Mrs Baps was a regular with Van Air to BHD and they weren't cheap. Over the last 18 months or so, her fares were averaging around £105 RTN.