Elon Musk and Michael O’Leary, the CEO of Ryanair, have recently engaged in a verbal spar over the use of Starlink, Musk’s satellite internet service, onboard Ryanair flights. O’Leary has made it clear that the airline has no intention of integrating Starlink into its fleet, a decision that has sparked a quick rebuttal from Musk’s camp.

The controversy kicked off on January 14 when O’Leary publicly dismissed the idea of implementing in-flight Wi-Fi across Ryanair’s aircraft. He raised concerns about the potential increase in fuel consumption that such a move would entail. These remarks captured the attention of Starlink, prompting them to respond swiftly.

In an interview with Reuters, O’Leary explained that installing an antenna on the aircraft’s fuselage would increase both the weight and aerodynamic drag, leading to what he termed a ‘two per cent fuel penalty.’ This additional fuel cost, he argued, would not be justified, especially given the nature of Ryanair’s operations.

O’Leary further elaborated that the airline’s customers, who typically embark on short journeys lasting around an hour, are not likely to pay extra for Wi-Fi access. This is particularly relevant as Ryanair specializes in short- and medium-haul flights across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, and currently does not offer Wi-Fi services onboard.

He added that Ryanair’s passengers would be unlikely to pay extra for Wi-Fi on short, one-hour flights, reports The Independent.

Ryanair operates thousands of short- and medium-haul services across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, and currently offers no on-board Wi-Fi to customers.

Starlink, developed by SpaceX, delivers high-speed internet through a vast network of low-Earth orbit satellites. 

In response to O’Leary’s remarks, SpaceX’s vice-president of Starlink engineering, Michael Nicolls, took to X.

Elon Musk and Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary (pictured) have exchanged sharp words following the airline boss’ refusal to install Starlink internet on Ryanair fleet 

O’Leary’s comments prompted an immediate response from Musk (pictured)

He explained that a ‘2 per cent fuel impact might be true for legacy terminals, but Starlink’s terminal is much lower profile and more efficient’.

Musk then weighed in on the matter, also taking to X to criticise the Ryanair boss. 

He called O’Leary ‘misinformed’ and warned that Ryanair would lose customers to airlines offering internet access.

In another post, Musk labelled the chief executive an ‘idiot’, writing: ‘Ryanair CEO is an utter idiot. Fire him.’ 

O’Leary responded the following day (January 15) during an interview on Irish radio station Newstalk, where he said installing Starlink would cost the airline between $200 million and $250 million annually.

He said: ‘In other words, about an extra dollar for every passenger we fly, and the reality for us is we can’t afford those costs.

‘Passengers won’t pay for internet usage; if it’s free, they’ll use it – but they won’t pay one euro each to use the internet.’

The Ryanair boss also hit back at Musk directly, telling listeners they should ‘pay no attention whatsoever to Elon Musk’.

Starlink, a service that delivers high-speed internet through a vast network of low-Earth orbit satellites, is owned by Musk

Musk took to X this week to criticise the Ryanair boss

The Ryanair boss (pictured) also hit back at Musk directly, calling him an ‘utter idiot’.

‘He’s an idiot’, O’Leary added. ‘Very wealthy, but he’s still an idiot’.

Meanwhile, the ‘world’s best airline’ is upgrading its entire fleet with ultra-fast Starlink Wi-Fi – making it the world’s largest international airline to offer the service across its network.

From 23 November 2025, passengers on select Emirates aircraft will be able to stream, video call, game, work and browse social media in real time – free of charge – at 40,000ft with simple one-click access.

The first of Emirates’ 232 Boeing 777 aircraft equipped with Starlink internet was scheduled to enter commercial service in November, with plans to accelerate installations across the carrier’s fleet at 14 aircraft per month.