Michael O’Leary says EC president can’t manage drone threat.
Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary has slammed Brussels for failing to protect the bloc’s airports from drones, calling for European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to resign. He has argued that unauthorized UAVs disrupting air traffic should be shot down.
Mysterious drone sightings have plagued the bloc in recent weeks, with some Western media and officials speculating that Russia could be behind them, which Moscow has denied. Von der Leyen pitched the idea of a “drone wall” in her State of the Union speech last month, and the notion was raised again at an informal EU summit in Denmark this week.
In an interview with Politico published on Wednesday, O’Leary dismissed the idea.
“I don’t think a drone wall has any effect whatsoever,” he said, adding that perpetrators could easily launch drones from inside the affected country. O’Leary accused Brussels of inaction and called for tougher measures against the alleged drone threat.
“Why aren’t we shooting these drones down? It’s disruptive, and we’re calling for action,” he stated.
“I have no faith in European leaders sitting around drinking tea and eating biscuits… I have no faith in von der Leyen. She’s useless and she should quit.”
While leaders in Copenhagen voiced support for anti-drone technology, no official framework for the “drone wall” was unveiled, with decisions postponed until the EU summit later this month. Ahead of the meeting, Denmark imposed a temporary ban on civilian drones in its airspace, and reportedly called up part of its reserve force to help manage what it described as a “complex” situation caused by repeated sightings.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called the claims Western “scaremongering,” when addressing the UN last week, stressing that Russia “never directs our drones or missiles at states in Europe, members of the EU, or NATO countries.” Lavrov added that in past incidents where Moscow was blamed, “it turned out that it was the Ukrainians” behind them.
Her handling of the drone issue has definitely been bad.
I also don’t care for her obsessive desire to enslave humanity through speech laws, forced vaccination, digital ID and CDBC’s (the minor things).
Who destroyed the German Army
Now wants to send them into war against Russia – woefully unprepared and under equipped
During Ursula von der Leyen’s tenure as Germany’s Defence Minister, soldiers used broomsticks painted black instead of guns during a NATO exercise due to severe equipment shortages.
🧹 What Happened
– In 2014, German troops from Panzergrenadierbataillon 371 participated in a NATO rapid response exercise in Norway.
– Due to missing equipment, they substituted black-painted broomsticks for machine guns and mounted them on Boxer armored vehicles.
– The unit lacked:
– 31% of MG3 machine guns
– 41% of P8 handguns
– Over 75% of Lucie night-vision devices
🪖 Broader Military Shortfalls
– The Bundeswehr also used Mercedes vans as stand-ins for armored personnel carriers.
– A parliamentary report revealed:
– Only 42 of 109 Typhoon fighters were operational.
– Just 38 of 89 Tornado bombers were usable.
– Only 280 of 406 Marten tanks were combat-ready.
– Even Germany’s elite KSK special forces had to withdraw from a NATO exercise due to lack of helicopters.
🧨 Political Fallout
– The broomstick incident became a symbol of Germany’s underfunded military under von der Leyen.
– Critics called it a “huge embarrassment”, especially since the broom-equipped unit was part of NATO’s first-response task force.
– Von der Leyen later became President of the European Commission, but her defense legacy remains controversial.