Michael O'leary

Group Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director, Ryanair

Search every verified Michael O'leary interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Michael O'Leary, Group CEO of Ryanair, reported a Q1 FY27 profit after tax of €538 million, a 34% decline from the prior year, which he attributed to a doubling of unhedged fuel costs and a 6% drop in average fares partly due to the Middle East conflict and Easter timing. He noted that traffic grew 6% to 61.3 million passengers, and that Ryanair has hedged 80% of FY27 jet fuel at $67 per barrel and 15% of FY28 fuel at $85 per barrel. O'Leary stated that the airline will not wait for passengers delayed by passport queues, saying "the plane is going without you" if they are not at the boarding gate on time. O'Leary criticized the UK government's Air Passenger Duty as a "ludicrous" tax, arguing its abolition would boost tourism, and dismissed a Treasury response as evidence that officials "don't live in the real world." He also opposed proposed EU passenger rights changes requiring airlines to advertise fares that include a second carry-on bag, arguing that more than 50% of passengers do not bring one and that the rule would force airlines to advertise higher prices than their lowest available fares. He described the regulation as "bureaucratic bunk" and said the EU has failed to address air traffic control delays or the emissions trading system tax on intra-EU flights.