US technology boss Elon Musk questioned his followers on his social network
Tuesday evening, the low-cost airline Ryanair had not responded to a request for AFP to respond to the survey published Monday, with more than 900,000 participants.
Musk, who founded Tesla and runs Starlink – a satellite internet system developed by his aerospace company SpaceX – has been suggesting for days that he might buy Ryanair, Europe’s largest airline.
He also called for O’Leary to be fired, describing him as “a real idiot.”
The feud between the two men, both known for their provocative outbursts, began after O’Leary gave an interview to Irish radio station Newstalk.
The Irishman has ruled out using Starlink to equip its fleet with wifi, estimating that it would cost up to $250 million a year by increasing the drag of its planes’ aerial antennas and burning more fuel.
Ryanair passengers would also not want to pay for internet service, he added.
“What Elon Musk knows about flying and dragging would be rubbish…Frankly, I wouldn’t pay any attention to anything Elon Musk puts on his cesspit called X,” he said.
“He’s an idiot; very rich, but still an idiot,” he added.
Ryanair’s market capitalization is nearly €30 billion ($35 billion).
European regulations, however, require that an airline based in the EU be majority owned by EU nationals (or nationals of other European countries).
Elon Musk paid $44 billion to buy Twitter in 2022, which he then renamed X.
