Ryanair Sparks Fare Frenzy with Back-to-Back €16.99 Sales
The low-cost carrier has extended its seat sale offerings amid spat between CEO Michael O’Leary and Elon Musk.
(Dublin, Ireland) Dublin-based low-cost carrier Ryanair (NASDAQ: RYAAY) announced last week that it had begun offering travelers a sale featuring one-way fares from Ireland to destinations across Spain, Italy, Turkey and beyond for as little as €16.99, (available for booking through February 8th for travel between March 1 and October 31) – the sale took a new shape as it was extended today (Jan. 20th), amid CEO Michael O’Leary’s spat with Elon Musk, as the company’s “‘Big Idiot’ Seat Sale.”
Image of a Ryanair airliner courtesy of Ryanair.
Ryanair’s initial sale, which offers ~ 10 million seats across more than 235 routes, was framed by the airline as a bid to stimulate demand and fill aircraft during the 2026 summer season, according to the Irish Mirror.
The Mirror shared that the initial sale included fares from Dublin to major leisure and city markets such as Alicante, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Tenerife South, Milan Malpensa, Bodrum, Dalaman and even Rabat.
Today – just days later – following a widely shared online spat between Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary and Elon Musk that spilled onto social media, Ryanair doubled down on the publicity. The airline announced via Instagram a second flash sale, releasing an additional 100,000 seats at the same €16.99 one-way price point, per Ryanair Instagram and The Guardian.
The timing of the second sale highlights the carrier’s long-standing ability to convert controversy, executive personality, and social media buzz into immediate commercial momentum.
Ryanair (RYAAY) is the single airline carrier trading in the green today, with shares up 1.26% at $69.14 as of 3.12pm ET.
**Not investment advice; neither The FLY Report nor FlyJets – nor any associated individual – is a registered investment advisor.
