Michael O’Leary, the boss of Ryanair, appears to be on a mission to spoil attempts by European governments to bail out their national air carriers. Earlier this week he tried to throw a spanner in the works by threatening to appeal against Germany’s plans to take a 20 percent stake in Lufthansa by providing €9bn in state aid. Now he’s spoken out against discussions between the Czech Republic and the airline Smartwings, by saying if the airline were allowed to collapse, Ryanair could help replace at least some of the flights. “We’re willing to take on more planes from Boeing and we’ll need staff,” he said on CNN Prima News. “Don’t be fooled by airlines that are asking for financial help. Illegal support has deformed the market for several years, just look at the example of Lufthansa. The Germans are abusing their power.” He said the Czech government shouldn’t be wasting its money saving Smartwings, since it’s a private company owned by rich investors.
“Anyone who’s living under the illusion that Ryanair will be the knight on a white horse that will save the situation is quite mistaken,” said deputy minister Karel Havlíček. “This is just Ryanair marketing. The best solution would be if the owners put in their own money. I’m not saying, however, that we can’t survive without Smartwings.”
