Featured Image Credit: Andrew Harnik / Staff / Getty
Elon Musk could soon be soaring to new heights, and having created electric car companies, ones that take us to the stars, and ones that dig giant tunnels underground, he could again be sticking with transportation for his next venture.
When not busy trying to put man back on the Moon for the first time since 1973 with SpaceX's Artemis missions, Elon Musk might be staying a little closer to home as he hints at taking over a major airline.
While plane travel was once largely restricted to the rich flying around on veritable palaces in the sky, where you could smoke and wander around like you were in flying living rooms, it's now cheaper than ever to get around the globe. This has come at a cost to many things, and as various airlines jostle to stay up in the air, budget airlines are accused of cramming more passengers than ever into those little tin cans in the sky.
There's been a vocal backlash to the idea of 'standing' seats, and although it could lead to fares of just $5 for a trip, they're sure to come with controversy.
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Among the most infamous budget airlines, the Ireland-based Ryanair gets lots of flak. Facing a barrage of abuse over its strict baggage rules, there was also a scandal back in 2009 when CEO Michael O'Leary joked about charging to use toilets on board.
O'Leary remains unpopular among disgruntled passengers, and now, it seems he's found an enemy in Elon Musk.
Teasing that he could take Ryanair under his 'wing', and branding O'Leary as an 'utter idiot', the world's richest man took aim at the budget airline on X. When Musk's social media platform was hit by another outage, the ever-cheeky Ryanair account sniped back: "Perhaps you need Wi-Fi, @elonmusk?”
While the airline is known for going viral with its sassy social media posts, this one didn't tickle Musk's funny bone.
Flashing his groaning wallet, Musk chuckled: "Should I buy Ryan Air and put someone whose actual name is Ryan in charge?"
Should I buy Ryan Air and put someone whose actual name is Ryan in charge?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 16, 2026
This comes in the midst of a feud with Musk and Ryanair, with O'Leary rejecting the idea of using Musk's Starlink internet devices on its fleet of over 600 jets. Claiming it would cost Ryanair in terms of fuel consumption due to the drag on Starlink antenna, the airline CEO estimated it would cost $250 million a year: "You need to put an antenna on the fuselage; it comes with a 2% fuel penalty because of the weight and drag. We don't think our passengers are willing to pay for WiFi for an average 1-hour flight."
This landed on Musk's radar, who said the plane boss was 'misinformed' and didn't know how to measure Starlink's fuel impact. Taking X, the tech mogul wrote: "Ryanair CEO is an utter idiot. Fire him."
When some suggested Musk buy Ryanair and get rid of O'Leary himself, the billionaire called it a 'good idea'.
Musk continues to argue that getting the internet on planes will become an expected norm like it largely is on trains, saying Ryanair will lose customers unless it gets on board with the trend.
While the Ryanair social media team is clearly willing to joke about the situation, we're not so sure Mr. Musk is.
