Ryanair CEO Calls Elon Musk an ‘Idiot’, Musk Jokes About Buying Airline and Firing Him After X Outage

A brief technical outage on X snowballed into a viral public spat after the head of Europe’s largest airline exchanged sharp words with its owner, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk. What began as light-hearted banter quickly escalated into name-calling, sarcasm, and a tongue-in-cheek takeover threat that played out entirely on social media.

The episode unfolded after X suffered a service disruption, its second outage in three days, leaving users complaining about frozen timelines and posts failing to load. Seizing the moment, the official account of Ryanair posted a cheeky message aimed at Musk, asking whether he needed better Wi-Fi. The jab was clearly meant as humour, but it did not go unnoticed.

Musk responded in his trademark sarcastic style, quipping that he should buy “Ryan Air” and put someone actually named Ryan in charge. The reply instantly went viral, racking up millions of views and sparking a flood of memes, reactions, and commentary across the platform.

However, the exchange was not entirely playful. It followed a much sharper attack made days earlier by Ryanair’s outspoken CEO Michael O’Leary during a radio interview in Ireland. Asked about speculation that Ryanair could install Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service on its aircraft, O’Leary dismissed the idea outright and used unusually blunt language.

“I would pay no attention whatsoever to Elon Musk. He’s an idiot — very wealthy, but still an idiot,” O’Leary said, rejecting the Starlink proposal without hesitation.

The remark quickly circulated online, prompting Musk to fire back. Sharing a post referencing the comments, Musk wrote that the Ryanair CEO was an “utter idiot” and added that he should be fired. The sharp retort reignited the feud and drew widespread attention beyond aviation and tech circles.

O’Leary later elaborated on why Ryanair has no interest in Starlink, grounding his argument in cost economics. According to him, fitting aircraft with satellite internet would require rooftop antennas and lead to annual costs of roughly $200–250 million. That expense, he said, would ultimately translate into higher ticket prices.

Ryanair’s business model, O’Leary argued, leaves no room for such add-ons. “Passengers won’t pay even one euro for onboard internet,” he said, adding that while customers might use Wi-Fi if it were free, they are unwilling to pay extra for it.

He also took a swipe at Musk’s social media platform itself, describing X as a “cesspit” and stating that he avoids social media entirely. O’Leary said he was too old and too busy to engage in online spats, even as the controversy unfolded across the internet.

The clash has since become a talking point about ego, leadership styles, and how quickly business disagreements can turn personal in the age of social media. Musk’s joking threat to buy Ryanair and fire its CEO appears firmly rooted in sarcasm, but it also echoes his past behaviour. Older posts of Musk casually discussing buying Twitter — years before he actually did so — have resurfaced, adding irony to the episode.

For now, the Musk–O’Leary feud remains a viral spectacle rather than a serious corporate showdown, underscoring how outages, humour, and sharp tongues can collide in full public view on social media.