Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary was struck with a pie in the face outside the European Commission in Brussels as he attempted to carry out a publicity stunt. The incident came shortly after Ryanair pilots announced their latest strike.
On Thursday morning, Ryanair's new flight announcements were disrupted by two protestors who threw a pie in the face of the Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary outside the Berlaymont building. At the time, O'Leary was preparing a publicity stunt, armed with a cardboard cutout of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, as he was approached by two members of the public.
The two climate activists hurled two cream pies at him, exclaiming in English: "Welcome to Belgium, stop the pollution from your f***ng planes."
"Apparently these activists are very happy about the new routes we are announcing for Charleroi. They were dancing for joy. But if I may offer a word of advice, next time use Irish cream, it’s much better," responded the CEO at the press conference following the incident.
The news comes hours after Ryanair pilots announced their fourth strike in two months. Employees of the low-cost Irish carrier accuse it of harvesting bumper profits while failing to reverse a 20% salary cut implemented during the Covid-19 crisis.
They also allege that Ryanair has attempted to "blackmail" them by refusing to revise a previous agreement regulating employee rest days unless pilots' legal complaints against the airline are withdrawn.
Pie in the sky
Today, Ryanair also announced it would launch seven new air routes from Belgium this winter and two new aircraft will be based at Charleroi Airport, the airline’s CEO announced at a press conference in Brussels on Thursday. He estimated that the addition of two aircraft would create more than sixty new jobs.
The low-cost airline’s seven new destinations are Amman (Jordan), Cluj and Iasi (Romania), Milan (Italy), Nantes (France), Tirana (Albania) and Warsaw (Poland). The frequency of 30 routes will also be increased.
