Michael O'Leary, CEO of the budget Irish airline Ryanair, expressed disinterest in in-flight Starlink services, and as Business Insider reported, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took it personally.
Starlink is a wholly owned subsidiary of SpaceX; Musk is also CEO of SpaceX.
According to the outlet, two European carriers — Lufthansa and Scandinavian Airlines — recently introduced or plan to soon offer Starlink Wi-Fi to passengers, whereas Ryanair hasn't offered in-flight internet.
On Jan. 14, a Reuters reporter cited Lufthansa's then-newly announced Starlink deal and asked O'Leary whether Ryanair planned to follow suit. His response was blunt.
"We don't think our passengers are willing to pay for Wi-Fi for an average 1-hour flight," O'Leary responded, citing an estimated 2% reduction in fuel efficiency due to "weight and drag."
Unlike Lufthansa andp Ryanair is focused on short-haul travel, with flights averaging 90 minutes to 2 hours.
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Reuters' initial coverage was unusually brief, consisting of three sentences in total — but Musk still rapidly bristled at O'Leary's remarks, statements that had in no way disparaged Starlink.
As Gizmodo pointed out, his statements were "straightforward," but Musk notoriously "does not respond well to rejection or critical feedback."
In a late-night response to another user's post on the social platform X about Ryanair's decision, Musk claimed that the carrier would "lose customers to airlines that do have Internet." As Business Insider noted, SpaceX executives rapidly chimed in to challenge O'Leary's comments about fuel efficiency.
O'Leary appeared on the Irish radio show Newstalk on Jan. 15, and the issue of Starlink and Ryanair flights arose. He reiterated the airline's cost-benefit analysis and said adding the service could cost the budget carrier up to $250 million a year.
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Elon is the man 🥰 "In other words, about an extra dollar for every passenger we fly, and the reality for us is we can't afford those costs," O'Leary explained.
But while his initial remarks didn't address Musk as a businessman, his subsequent commentary was unfiltered.
"I would pay no attention whatsoever to Elon Musk. He's an idiot. Very wealthy, but he's still an idiot," O'Leary added.
According to Reuters, Ryanair's CEO also described Musk's X — which has come under fire in recent months — as a "cesspit."
Predictably, Musk was unable to let the slight go, so much so that he reached for the same pejorative in a Jan. 16 response on X.
"Ryanair CEO is an utter idiot," Musk wrote. "Fire him."
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