Hostilities between Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary flared Tuesday following the carrier's rejection of Starlink connectivity. The report details that Musk responded to the decision by mocking O'Leary's intelligence and suggesting he might acquire the airline himself.
The executive claimed the necessary equipment would cost the airline approximately $250 million a year in fuel – about one dollar per passenger. O'Leary told the broadcaster that while travelers might use free internet, they would not pay for it. Musk disputed this assessment on X, asserting that the CEO was ill-informed about the drag caused by the hardware, according to Coincentral.
During his interview, O'Leary acknowledged Musk's wealth but described him as an idiot and referred to X as a cesspit. He added that he would disregard Musk's views on aviation. Coincentral noted that Musk subsequently posted multiple times about buying the airline, asking his 232.5 million followers for a price and joking about appointing someone named Ryan as the new leader.
Buy Ryan Air and restore Ryan as their rightful ruler
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 19, 2026
A poll created by the tech mogul asked if he should buy the company and restore "Ryan" to power. The survey attracted over 29 million views and 766,000 votes, with 77% supporting the idea. Ryanair's stock reacted to the attention, rising 2.52% in after-hours trading on January 20.
The company currently has a market cap of $35 billion on NASDAQ. Musk, whose net worth stands at $681 billion, previously bought Twitter for $44 billion in 2022 and fired its executive team. Ryanair's official X account joined the dispute, recalling a sarcastic comment it made during a previous outage asking if Musk needed WiFi.
Wi-Fi on planes https://t.co/mVEYyDpgr3
— Ryanair (@Ryanair) January 19, 2026
Musk retorted by insisting O'Leary should be fired and knows nothing about drag. Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian commented on the entertainment value of the timeline, while users suggested new CEOs named Ryan. The poll is set to close after 24 hours, though no formal offer has been made.
