Michael O’Leary, chief executive officer of Ryanair Holdings Inc., lashed out at Boeing Co. during a conference call Monday, criticizing the planemaker’s “very poor management” and calling for a restructuring at the top.
“Right now we think Boeing’s management is running around like headless chickens, unable to sell planes, and then they can’t even deliver the planes they supply on time,” O’Leary said in a Post . Earnings conference with analysts, according to a FactSet transcript.
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Dublin-based Ryanair, Europe’s largest low-cost airline, has ordered hundreds of planes from Boeing, but deliveries have been delayed, forcing the airline to cut its flight schedule. Last fall, Ryanair ended negotiations with Boeing over an order for Max 10 aircraft over a price dispute.
O’Leary made it clear Monday that he blames Boeing.
“Boeing’s management in Seattle is very bad,” O’Leary said Monday. “We’re their biggest customer, but they need a reboot or a reboot somewhere in Seattle, and hopefully [CEO Dave] Calhoun will deliver.”
O’Leary said Boeing had agreed to deliver a number of 737 Max planes by spring but didn’t get through.
“It probably cost us about 600,000, 800,000 seats in May and June, which is disappointing and still hasn’t been explained by Boeing,” he said.
O’Leary was particularly frustrated by the delay because he said the planes had been manufactured years ago.
“All you had to do was put petrol in them and fly them to Dublin. Really, I don’t see why it takes you — you’re delaying this for two or three months,” he said. “But I think it’s reminiscent of a very poor management performance in Seattle, both in competing for market share against Airbus and in meeting your commitments in delivering the promised aircraft.”
“So Boeing needs a management restart in Seattle and either the existing manager needs to up their game or they need to change the existing management,” O’Leary said.
Still, he said Ryanair would be happy to work with Boeing’s existing management “if they pull themselves together.” …but they need to fucking improve on what they’ve delivered to us over the past 12 months.”
“We’re a willing customer, but we’re struggling with slow deliveries and an inability to secure a deal on new aircraft despite the many white tails that are grounded in Seattle,” O’Leary said. “They wonder what the hell their sales team has been doing for the past two years. And honestly most of them seem to be at home in their jim jams and working from home instead of out there selling planes to customers.”
Last week, Boeing reported that its April deliveries fell and its shares fell since it reported a large profit loss in the first quarter. Boeing shares BA, -2.48% are down 31% over the past month and nearly 40% year-to-date.
Ryanair’s American Depository Receipts RYAAY, -2.39% are down about 21% year-to-date, while Ireland-listed shares RYA, -0.18% are down about 10% year-to-date.