Ryanair CEO Accuses NATS of Misleading Public on Flight Disruptions

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary has accused NATS CEO Martin Rolfe of lying about the cause of a flight outage affecting thousands. O'Leary claims a rogue flight plan was the issue, while Rolfe suggests another cause. Ryanair is suing NATS and demanding improvements.

Ryanair's chief executive, Michael O'Leary, has leveled serious allegations against Britain's air traffic control operator NATS, claiming misleading statements were made regarding a recent flight disruption that cancelled thousands of flights.

O'Leary asserted that the chaos stemmed from a rogue flight plan, echoing an issue from 2023, while NATS CEO Martin Rolfe suggested a different cause. O'Leary called Rolfe's comments deceptive, stating they aim to protect Rolfe's position.

In response, Ryanair has taken legal action against NATS, seeking over £7 million in damages. The UK government has tasked Rolfe with an investigation, demanding clarity on the outage that impacted numerous travelers.