Ryanair's CEO Michael O'Leary has come out of a heated spat with Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX and Starlink, unscathed - thanks to what he calls "free PR". The billionaire entrepreneur had publicly called O'Leary "misinformed" over Ryanair's refusal to install Starlink on its fleet of 650 aircraft. However, this public exchange turned out to be a windfall for the airline.
According to O'Leary, the controversy generated an astonishing 1,500 news articles across nearly 60 countries - many of which highlighted the airline's brand, even if none had known about it before. This publicity coup has left Ryanair feeling grateful for Musk's aggressive response.
In a bid to capitalize on the negative attention, Ryanair launched a "Big 'Idiot' Seat Sale" targeting Musk, offering discounted seats in an attempt to sway public opinion. The airline reported a modest 2-3 percent increase in bookings during this time, with revenue rising by 9 percent year-over-year.
The reason behind Ryanair's hesitation on installing Starlink is largely due to the added costs of fuel drag and customer fees. O'Leary estimates that these costs could add up to €200 million per year for installation and penalties. He believes that only around 5-10% of passengers would be willing to pay extra for in-flight wifi, which he thinks wouldn't significantly boost revenues.
Moreover, the CEO is unconcerned about his competitors - EasyJet and Wizz Air - following suit with Starlink. O'Leary points out that customers are more likely to focus on the cheapest fare than on whether there's free wifi available. However, if costs can be reduced to a suitable level, Ryanair might reconsider fitting Starlink technology onto its planes in the future.
O'Leary hopes that advancements in technology will drive down installation and fuel-related costs in five years' time. By then, he predicts most airlines will have installed wifi on short-haul flights - including his own airline. As such, when that day comes, Ryanair will undoubtedly consider installing Starlink systems without adding any drag or compromise to the aircraft's design.
According to O'Leary, the controversy generated an astonishing 1,500 news articles across nearly 60 countries - many of which highlighted the airline's brand, even if none had known about it before. This publicity coup has left Ryanair feeling grateful for Musk's aggressive response.
In a bid to capitalize on the negative attention, Ryanair launched a "Big 'Idiot' Seat Sale" targeting Musk, offering discounted seats in an attempt to sway public opinion. The airline reported a modest 2-3 percent increase in bookings during this time, with revenue rising by 9 percent year-over-year.
The reason behind Ryanair's hesitation on installing Starlink is largely due to the added costs of fuel drag and customer fees. O'Leary estimates that these costs could add up to €200 million per year for installation and penalties. He believes that only around 5-10% of passengers would be willing to pay extra for in-flight wifi, which he thinks wouldn't significantly boost revenues.
Moreover, the CEO is unconcerned about his competitors - EasyJet and Wizz Air - following suit with Starlink. O'Leary points out that customers are more likely to focus on the cheapest fare than on whether there's free wifi available. However, if costs can be reduced to a suitable level, Ryanair might reconsider fitting Starlink technology onto its planes in the future.
O'Leary hopes that advancements in technology will drive down installation and fuel-related costs in five years' time. By then, he predicts most airlines will have installed wifi on short-haul flights - including his own airline. As such, when that day comes, Ryanair will undoubtedly consider installing Starlink systems without adding any drag or compromise to the aircraft's design.
! The CEO's got some points about customers not being super keen on paying extra for wifi, but I think it's also about branding and making a statement. I mean, who doesn't love a good "Big Idiot" sale 
? 
, and it seems like Ryanair got a nice chunk of free PR out of this whole ordeal. I just hope they don't get too complacent and forget to innovate... or else they'll be left in the dust 
!
I'm not surprised O'Leary came out unscathed from that whole thing... Like, who needs enemies when you can just play the victim 
? And that's exactly what he did - framed Musk as "aggressive" and turned it into a PR stunt. It's genius, really. I mean, who wouldn't want to be seen as a champion of the people, fighting against the evil billionaire? 
Meanwhile, Ryanair reaps the benefits from all this attention... it's like they're trying to milk this controversy for all it's worth 
. And let's be real, O'Leary is just playing dumb about Starlink - he knows the costs are too high, but he's using that as an excuse to wait and see how things play out 
. Mark my words, when those costs do come down, Ryanair will be like "Oh, we should've done it years ago!" 
, like who knew being called "misinformed" would be a PR goldmine for ryanair? 
And yeah, sure, the "Big 'Idiot' Seat Sale" might've brought in a little extra cash, but it's not like they needed to resort to that. I think Ryanair should just stick to their original plan and save themselves the headache 
. And honestly, I'm not convinced that most airlines will be installing Starlink systems anytime soon... those costs are still too high for me 
! Like, who thought it was a good idea to try to win an argument with someone by offering discounted seats? It just comes across as desperate and attention-seeking. And honestly, I think Ryanair is getting way too much PR out of this whole thing - 1,500 news articles across 60 countries? That's just silly 
One thing's for sure, Elon Musk's got some serious PR skills