Michael O’Leary

Introduction

Michael O’Leary is the Irish-born billionaire who has run Ryanair, Europe’s largest budget airline, as its chief executive since 1994 — and one of the most notoriously provocative businessmen in Europe. In September 2026 he ignited an international backlash by describing rival airlines’ high fares with the word “rapists,” calling competitors like Aer Lingus, Lufthansa and British Airways “the high-fare rapists around Europe.” When a rape crisis centre demanded an apology, he refused, telling the charity he would not be “issuing any apology or accepting your offer of training.” The remarks drew condemnation from Ireland’s Taoiseach and Tánaiste and the UK’s transport secretary, and after more than a week of pressure O’Leary reversed himself, issuing a video apology on September 18, 2026 in which he said he was “truly sorry” for the offense caused, “especially to the survivors.”

Background Information

O’Leary became Ryanair’s chief executive in 1994 and built the Irish carrier into one of Europe’s biggest airlines; he is among Ireland’s richest businesspeople. His career has been punctuated by deliberately offensive stunts and remarks: he had earlier made controversial comments about obese and Muslim passengers, floated a fee for using the toilet mid-flight, and expressed climate denial. As far back as 2004, he reportedly called the owners of Stansted Airport “a bunch of overcharging rapists” during a row over airport charges, and he has previously called some of his own staff “lazy bastards” and told passengers looking for refunds “we don’t want to hear your sob stories.” In 2026 he also waged a public spat with Elon Musk over Ryanair’s refusal to install Starlink WiFi, calling Musk an “idiot” while Ryanair ran a “Great idiot seat sale” mocking him.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Allegations. The claims in this section concern offensive public remarks that O’Leary made on camera and does not dispute saying; the “cancellation” here is reputational, not legal. No crime is alleged, no charges exist, and his initial refusal to apologize — as well as his eventual apology — are his own documented words.

The controversy began on a Thursday in September 2026, when O’Leary spoke to journalists at Ryanair’s Dublin headquarters ahead of the airline’s yearly shareholder meeting. Asked about competitors raising fares, he said: “You might find some people will choose not to fly with Ryanair – but you know they’ll be overrun with the people abandoning Aer Lingus, Lufthansa, BA [British Airways] and others desperate to get to Ryanair’s low fares because they can’t afford to fly with the high-fare rapists around Europe.” When reporters questioned whether he was trivializing rape, he doubled down, saying, “That’s what I call high-fare airlines like Lufthansa, BA and others,” and asked by a Press Association reporter whether the language was appropriate, answered, “Absolutely,” adding, “I’ll happily offend them on a regular basis.” The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre’s chief executive, Rachel Morrogh, wrote to O’Leary saying the charity had received calls from rape victims “upset and distressed because of what you said,” accusing him of trying to get a headline and offering him training on the impact of sexual violence. O’Leary replied that no remarks of his “could possibly trivialise the heinous crime of rape” and that he would “not be issuing any apology or accepting your offer of training.”

Public Reaction and Consequences

Politicians in two countries weighed in. Ireland’s Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was “disappointed” and that O’Leary “should just stand back and reflect and listen to the voice of women,” calling rape “an awful, awful violation of a person, which leaves a terrible trauma.” Tánaiste Simon Harris called it “clearly an inappropriate use of language” that O’Leary “should have moved to rectify,” while Labour senator Laura Harmon said his “casual use of the word ‘rapist’ to describe prices of his competitors is deeply shocking and could be traumatizing for any survivor of sexual abuse.” UK transport secretary Heidi Alexander told LBC that women who have been raped are “not going to be rushing to book tickets with him, let’s be honest.” The Ryanair chief also used the same press run to dispute a passenger’s claim — which the airline is contesting — of being partially sucked out of a shattered window on a July 10 flight, saying the man was “certainly sucked towards the window, but he didn’t get out the window.”

On September 18, 2026, after what he described as 10 days of conversations with family and friends inside and outside Ryanair, O’Leary issued a video apology shared by Virgin Media News: “I’ve come to realize, however, that the word I used so carelessly has caused considerable upset and offense to a wide number of people, especially victims and survivors. I want to apologize, sincerely and unreservedly, to those people, especially to the survivors.” He added, “I am truly sorry for the offense and upset I’ve caused you … It won’t happen again.”

Current Status

O’Leary remains Ryanair’s chief executive; the airline has not announced any disciplinary action, and there is no indication his position is in jeopardy. His apology marked a complete U-turn from his refusal one week earlier, though he maintained in the video that he had always believed rape “cannot be trivialized” and that he “couldn’t have been clearer in this regard” when first questioned. The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, whose letter and offer of training he rejected publicly, received the apology he had told them would never come; whether the survivors’ groups that condemned him consider the matter closed remains to be seen. The passenger-lawsuit dispute over the July 10 window incident, which O’Leary publicly contested while admitting the passenger was entitled to “some compensation,” continues separately.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The episode dented the brand of calculated outrageousness that O’Leary has cultivated for three decades — a run that included the 2004 “overcharging rapists” quip about Stansted’s owners, insults aimed at his own staff, and proposed toilet fees. This time the joke landed differently: Ireland’s leader publicly lectured him, a UK cabinet minister mocked his airline on radio, and a rape crisis centre published his refusal to apologize. His capitulation — a formal, on-camera, “sincerely and unreservedly” apology — is a rare retreat for an executive who built his persona on never walking anything back, and it hands survivors’ advocates a precedent the next “O’Leary moment” will be measured against. For now he keeps his job, and his apology video stands as the episode’s last word: “It won’t happen again.”