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Ryanair CEO apologizes for comparing rival European airlines to ‘rapists’ in wild rant

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Herzlich, T. (2026, September 18). Ryanair CEO apologizes for comparing rival European airlines to ‘rapists’ in wild rant. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/09/18/business/ryanair-ceo-apologizes-for-comparing-european-airline-rivals-to-rapists-in-wild-rant/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

New York Post · collected 2026-09-18 · by Taylor Herzlich

Quick Summary

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary apologized for calling competitors "rapists" during a press conference last week in Dublin, after realizing it caused significant upset and offense, especially among survivors of sexual assault. In the apology video, he stated that using such language carelessly was inappropriate despite his clarification that rape is a serious crime. This incident follows previous controversies involving O'Leary's confrontational style, including disputes with Elon Musk over Ryanair’s satellite equipment installation plans.
Written by AI on 2026-09-18, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair, issued a video apology on Friday for calling rival airlines "rapists" during a press conference in Dublin last week, after facing criticism from sexual violence victim groups and politicians. He initially used the term to describe high-fare competitors like British Airways and Lufthansa, arguing that rape was "a terrible crime" and not trivialized by his comparison. However, after 10 days of reflection with family and friends, he acknowledged causing "considerable upset and offence." The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) had previously asked for an apology, which O'Leary now offers "sincerely and unreservedly" to survivors and victims of sexual violence.

Written for “Ryanair Boss Apologies For Rapists Co…” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 4 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Ryanair Boss Apologies For Rapists Co…
Politics · 5 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 20% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
BBC News
Hedges 2 of 23 claims Outlet record 68/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 1 of 23 claims Outlet record 64/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 1 of 19 claims Outlet record 64/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 2 of 31 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles describe different events, one about Ryanair CEO apologizing for offensive remarks and another about air traffic control issues affecting flights.”
Evening Standard
Hedges 5 of 48 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles describe different events, one involving a public apology by Ryanair's CEO for controversial remarks and the other regarding flight disruptions due to air traffic control issues.”
BBC News
Hedges 2 of 19 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles describe different stages of O'Leary's response to criticism over his 'high-fare rapists' remark; Article A covers his refusal to apologize, while Article B reports on an apology issued later.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
25
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
20%
5 of 25 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
5
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-18 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 16140 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Taylor Herzlich
64 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Also by Taylor Herzlich
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 64 articles by Taylor Herzlich →

Topics

Dublin European Irish Lufthansa Ryanair

Subjects

O’Leary PERSON · 10× Ryanair ORG · 6× Irish NORP · 3× Musk PERSON · 3× Elon Musk PERSON · 2× Lufthansa ORG · 2× Aer Lingus ORG · 1× Dublin GPE · 1× European ORG · 1× Michael O’Leary PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Serbian national Ljubisa Karović, 61, has claimed that his wife and fellow passengers desperately held onto him after a window shattered during a July 10 flight from Greece to Germany and his head and right shoulder were pulled partially outside.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-18
🔮 “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

Claims (25 extracted, 5 hedged)

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary apologized Friday for bizarrely comparing rival European airlines that charge high prices to “rapists” during a press conference last week. asserted
that → apologize → conference
The notoriously outspoken head of the Irish budget airline said he was “truly sorry” for causing “considerable upset and offense to a wide number of people.” asserted
he → say → people
During a presser last week in Dublin, O’Leary compared Ryanair’s competitors to sex offenders for raising airfares. asserted
O’Leary → compare → airfares
“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 uncertain
they → find → Europe
,” he said. asserted
he → say → ?
When reporters questioned whether O’Leary was trivializing rape, he doubled down, saying, “That’s what I call high-fare airlines like Lufthansa, BA and others,” according to the Mirror. uncertain
I → question → Mirror
But on Friday, O’Leary said he had realized an apology was necessary after discussing the matter with family members and friends over the past 10 days. asserted
apology → say → days
“I was quizzed by the press if I was trivializing rape. asserted
I → quiz → rape
I replied by asserting my firm belief that rape is a heinous and terrible crime which cannot be trivialized. asserted
which → reply → belief
I believe I couldn’t have been clearer in this regard,” O’Leary said in an apology video posted by Virgin Media News. asserted
O’Leary → believe → 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. asserted
I → come → people
I want to apologize, sincerely and unreservedly, to those people, especially to the survivors. asserted
I → want → survivors
“I am truly sorry for the offense and upset I’ve caused you … asserted
I → cause → you
It won’t happen again. asserted
It → happen → ?
I will try to learn from this mistake and do better in the future.” asserted
I → try → future
O’Leary – the Irish-born billionaire who became CEO of Ryanair in 1994 – has found himself under the spotlight before, recently sparring with Elon Musk on social media. asserted
who → bear → media
The airline boss said earlier this year he would not install WiFi equipment from Musk’s satellite business Starlink over concerns the added weight could drive the company’s fuel costs higher. uncertain
weight → say → costs
Musk posted on his social-media platform X that O’Leary was “misinformed,” after which O’Leary told an Irish radio station, “I would pay no attention whatsoever to Elon Musk, he’s an idiot.” asserted
he → post → Musk
The fight heated up, with Musk calling O’Leary an “utter idiot” and “imbecile.” asserted
Musk → heat → O’Leary
During his chaotic tirade last week, O’Leary disputed a passenger’s claim of being partially sucked out of a window during a flight with the airline. uncertain
O’Leary → dispute → airline
Serbian national Ljubisa Karović, 61, has claimed that his wife and fellow passengers desperately held onto him after a window shattered during a July 10 flight from Greece to Germany and his head and right shoulder were pulled partially outside. asserted
head → claim → Germany
He reportedly suffered neck and shoulder injuries, and has accused Ryanair’s crewmembers of neglecting to come to his aid, according to his lawyer. uncertain
He → suffer → lawyer
O’Leary said the passenger was “certainly sucked towards the window, but he didn’t get out the window,” adding he was “belted into his seat.” asserted
he → say → seat
The CEO said he was not trying to “downplay” the ordeal, but added: “We will be certainly at the end of the process disputing that he or any part of his anatomy will bend out the window.” asserted
he → say → window
He admitted the passenger was entitled to “some compensation,” but not the “millions” that his legal team has demanded. asserted
team → admit → that
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