ieExplains: Why Elon Musk can’t buy Ryanair despite his online jibes

Despite online bravado, strict EU ownership rules mean Elon Musk cannot buy or control Europe’s largest airline

The war of words between the two men kicked off last week after Mr O’Leary said he wouldn’t be installing SpaceX’s Starlink internet across Ryanair’s fleet. Picture: Dan Linehan

The online sparring between the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, and Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary has reached near-fever pitch, with the Tesla boss going so far as to ask his followers on X, formerly Twitter, whether he should buy the budget airline outright.

The war of words between the two men began last week after Mr O’Leary said he would not install SpaceX’s Starlink internet — also owned by Mr Musk — across Ryanair’s fleet because of the overall cost of the system, as well as added fuel costs from the antenna mounted on the roof of the cabin.