Ryanair boss taunts Elon Musk with free flight ticket as ‘battle of the billionaires’ erupts

Ryanair’s chief executive, Michael O’Leary, has sent a free flight ticket to Elon Musk in an apparent bid to calm the “battle of the billionaires”.

The Tesla, X and SpaceX owner has said the Ryanair boss “needs to be fired” after Mr O’Leary said he would not follow other airlines in installing Starlink wifi on the fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft.

Mr Musk, the world’s richest man, previously said Mr O’Leary’s calculation was wrong and called him “an utter idiot”. He also indicated he might buy Ryanair.

But the airline CEO told The Independent: “Anyone is free to buy Ryanair shares, but non-Europeans cannot control a European airline.”

Mr Musk has American, Canadian and South African citizenship.

Mr O’Leary said his reluctance to install wifi on Ryanair’s Boeing 737s was due to cost and complexity.

He said: “This is not simple. Once you start drilling holes in aircraft fuselages, it becomes very expensive and technically difficult. If it results in additional fuel drag, it’s something we would never go near.

“That said, we are very happy to continue discussions with Starlink, Amazon, and Vodafone about the possibility of doing this – but only in a way that lowers our costs. Those discussions will continue.

“The technology will eventually crack it. We’ll get there – 6G, 8G, 10G – and eventually the antenna won’t need to be external. It will come, but only when it can be provided free, without a cost penalty.”

“We don’t believe people will pay for onboard wifi, even on long-haul flights where it’s often poor despite being ‘free.’ Once it can be sponsored or offered at no cost, people will genuinely use it.

Ryanair has launched a seat sale that is claimed to be “only available for Elon Musk and any other ‘idiots’ on X”.

Mr O’Leary said: “If he wants to call me an idiot, he wouldn’t be the first and certainly won’t be the last. If it helps boost Ryanair sales, he can insult me all day.”

The airline CEO also offered advice to European politicians on how to deal with President Trump, saying: “It’s time for Europe to stand up to the US.”

He also called X “a cesspit”, but said he would not take the Ryanair account off the platform.

In response to a suggestion from The Independent, O’Leary said he would challenge Elon Musk to an arm-wrestling match in a bid to settle the dispute.

Read more: Ryanair launches ‘Big Idiot’ seat sale as spat with Elon Musk intensifies