Outspoken Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary has gotten himself into a war of words with rival budget airline Wizz Air, after questioning the value of the group’s new deal that gives passengers unlimited flights for €499 a year.
Speaking to Irish radio station Newstalk last week, O’Leary dismissed Wizz’s landmark Europe offer as “a bit of a marketing scam,” saying Ryanair would never consider introducing it.
“You can fly as often as you like, but you pay €9 every time you book a flight, and you can only book the flight three days before departure,” he told Newstalk.
“Most of the flight will be full, there’ll be no seat availability.
“It’s an interesting marketing stunt, but that’s all it is.
“People will still recognize that if you really want a low fare across Europe, whether in Wizz markets or in Ireland, you’ll book Ryanair.”
Wizz Air’s unlimited flights
Wizz announced the deal last week, offering spontaneous travelers the chance to rack up air miles across Europe at a discount.
However, there are a number of conditions. Flights can only be booked within 72 hours of departure, and travelers will still have to pay a booking fee of €9.99 on each flight.
A new EU Entry/Exit scheme, expected to be introduced in the autumn, will reportedly force airlines to register their passengers 48 hours before a flight, potentially shortening the window in which passengers can use their benefits.
Speaking to Newstalk on Tuesday, Yvonne Moynihan, chief corporate and ESG officer at Wizz Air, denounced O’Leary’s remarks on the deal.
“The comments of Mr. O'Leary were not only provocative but they were also inaccurate,” she said.
Moynihan says its €499 subscription sold out “almost immediately” after being offered to the public last week.
Questioned on whether there would even be seats available within the 72-hour window, Moynihan said it would be unlikely a flight would be sold out, with an average “load factor” of between 90% and 95%.
A representative for Ryanair didn’t immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
One area where Ryanair and Wizz Air are aligned is on a burdensome passenger cap at Dublin Airport.
O’Leary spent much of his interview with Newstalk decrying the 32-million–person annual cap at Ryanair’s main airport, given it has capacity for 60 million after a second runway was introduced in 2022.
He indicated in June that Ryanair would “make a fortune” this Christmas, blaming local authority Fingal County Council for giving in to NIMBYism from locals.
Wizz Air’s Moynihan said the airline, which doesn’t operate flights in Ireland, had no plans to change this until the passenger cap was lifted.
