Elon Musk has sparked online chatter about Europe’s largest low-cost airline after joking on X about buying Ryanair and putting “a Ryan in charge of Ryanair. The exchange began when Ryanair’s well-known social media team poked fun at Musk during a temporary outage on X, posting a message that read, “perhaps you need Wi-Fi @elonmusk?”. The comment quickly caught the attention of the platform’s owner.
Musk responded over the weekend by joking about a takeover, asking followers whether he should “buy Ryanair and put someone whose actual name is Ryan in charge”. He later escalated the banter by asking how much it would cost to buy the airline and saying it was Ryanair’s “destiny” to be owned by someone named Ryan.
He also launched a poll encouraging users to support the idea and went further by directly criticising Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary, calling him an “utter idiot” and suggesting he should be fired.
O’Leary did not respond on social media, having previously said he does not use such platforms. However, in comments to UK media, he dismissed Musk as a “wealthy idiot” and said he pays no attention to him.
Despite the online spectacle, any serious takeover would face major legal barriers. As a US citizen, Musk is not permitted to acquire a controlling stake in Ryanair unless the airline changes its ownership structure. Such a move would threaten its EU operating licences, which require the airline to remain under European control.
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