Elon Musk Weighs Buying Ryanair Amid Ongoing Feud with CEO Michael O'Leary
A bizarre and public spat has erupted between billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and the CEO of budget airline Ryanair, Michael O'Leary. The two have been trading barbs on social media since last week, when O'Leary rejected the idea of installing Starlink satellite internet technology on Ryanair's 650 aircraft.
O'Leary had stated that adding antennas to the planes would result in a mere 2% fuel drag and an additional $200m-$250m to Ryanair's annual kerosene bill. Musk took umbrage with this assessment, calling O'Leary "an idiot" on his platform X.
The exchange escalated when Musk floated the idea of buying Ryanair, asking his followers if he should take control of the airline and install Starlink technology across its fleet. Over three-quarters of respondents agreed, suggesting that Musk might actually pursue a takeover. However, share price movements on Tuesday indicated that investors were skeptical about the possibility.
Ryanair shares closed nearly 1% down in response to Musk's comments, which appeared to have little real-world impact on the airline. O'Leary had claimed that adding Starlink technology would be unaffordable for Ryanair and its passengers.
Despite the lack of immediate consequences, this exchange highlights the increasingly public and confrontational nature of Musk's interactions with other business leaders. The billionaire has a history of making bold statements and then following through on them, having previously suggested buying Twitter before eventually acquiring it for $44bn.
Airlines operating in the EU must be majority-owned by EU nationals or citizens from specific countries under EU regulations. With O'Leary dismissing Musk's expertise on aviation issues, it remains to be seen whether a takeover bid would be possible, and what implications such an acquisition would have for the airline industry as a whole.
A bizarre and public spat has erupted between billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and the CEO of budget airline Ryanair, Michael O'Leary. The two have been trading barbs on social media since last week, when O'Leary rejected the idea of installing Starlink satellite internet technology on Ryanair's 650 aircraft.
O'Leary had stated that adding antennas to the planes would result in a mere 2% fuel drag and an additional $200m-$250m to Ryanair's annual kerosene bill. Musk took umbrage with this assessment, calling O'Leary "an idiot" on his platform X.
The exchange escalated when Musk floated the idea of buying Ryanair, asking his followers if he should take control of the airline and install Starlink technology across its fleet. Over three-quarters of respondents agreed, suggesting that Musk might actually pursue a takeover. However, share price movements on Tuesday indicated that investors were skeptical about the possibility.
Ryanair shares closed nearly 1% down in response to Musk's comments, which appeared to have little real-world impact on the airline. O'Leary had claimed that adding Starlink technology would be unaffordable for Ryanair and its passengers.
Despite the lack of immediate consequences, this exchange highlights the increasingly public and confrontational nature of Musk's interactions with other business leaders. The billionaire has a history of making bold statements and then following through on them, having previously suggested buying Twitter before eventually acquiring it for $44bn.
Airlines operating in the EU must be majority-owned by EU nationals or citizens from specific countries under EU regulations. With O'Leary dismissing Musk's expertise on aviation issues, it remains to be seen whether a takeover bid would be possible, and what implications such an acquisition would have for the airline industry as a whole.
I mean, shares dropped by 1% after his comments, but that's not exactly a enthusiastic response from investors... 
And O'Leary's got some good points too - adding Starlink tech to all those planes would be crazy expensive. 
Plus, airlines have strict EU regulations about ownership and whatnot... I think this whole thing is just Musk trying to stir up drama on Twitter 
. What do you guys think tho?
he could literally change the game with starlink on all those planes!!! and can u even imagine the tweets tho 
like "musk takes control of ryanair" is already trending 
anyway, i don't think o'leary's being too harsh lol that 2% fuel drag thing might not be as big of a deal as people think 
so yeah, if musk wants to take ryanair on, i'm all in 
he's already making waves with his tweets before even taking action... and now he's suggesting buying ryanair just because o'leary didn't like his starlink idea 
gotta keep those regulations in check
can you believe this? Elon Musk trying to swoop in and save Ryanair from itself . Like, dude's got a lot of money, but buying an entire airline is just a whole 'nother level of crazy. And O'Leary's all like "no thanks, I've got this" and Musk's just over here throwing shade on Twitter 
. I mean, who needs Starlink internet on planes anyway? Is it really worth the extra $200m-$250m or is it just a fancy way of saying "Musk wants to make money"? And what would even be the logic behind taking over an airline that's basically doing just fine? 
️ idk if musk would actually succeed with a takeover but its def fun to watch him try 
. The thing is, Ryanair's business model is super lean, and they've managed to make it work by being super frugal 
️. But at the same time, Musk has shown before that he's not afraid to take risks and push boundaries 
. It could be a wild ride, especially considering how much is at stake 
. If Musk does decide to make a move, it'll be interesting to see how the airline industry reacts 
.
but at the same time, if he really wants to buy ryanair and install starlink tech on all their planes, maybe it could be a good thing for customers? 
. I mean, who needs a billionaire's tantrums on their flight? 
like, dude has already made billions off his tech ventures, does he really need to flex his muscles on some airline CEO? 
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!
. It's not just about making a profit, but also being sustainable 
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. Either way, this whole thing is getting messy 
. And honestly, it kinda rubs me the wrong way when people like Musk make snide comments about others on social media 
... can't we all just get along?