Ryanair boss O’Leary calls for ban on early-morning airport pints

Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary said airports should ban the sale of alcohol. Go one further, I say, and ban the sale of alcohol on flights too...

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary is one of the most outspoken people in the airline industry. He’s also known for almost exclusively promoting positions that help his airline, which is fair enough. So along those lines, here’s the latest example of that…

Recently, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary called for an end to pre-flight pints. Speaking to The Times, he said that the problem of inebriated passengers has gotten worse, claiming his company now has to divert an average of one flight a day due to rowdy behaviour on board.This, he shared, is up from one diversion a week a decade ago.“It’s becoming a real challenge for all airlines. I fail to understand why anybody in airport bars is serving people at five or six o’clock in the morning. Who needs to be drinking beer at that time?” he asked. He also pointed out that airport bars don’t have to follow the usual operating hours of other alcohol vendors, saying, “There should be no alcohol served at airports outside [of those] licensing hours.” O’Leary even called for a two-drink limit on airport bars, though he didn’t confirm whether Ryanair – which he said generally sticks to that rule anyway – would adopt the policy itself. “We are reasonably responsible, but the ones who are not responsible, the ones who are profiteering off it, are the airports who have these bars open at five or six o’clock in the morning and during delays are quite happy to send these people as much alcohol as they want because they know they’re going to export the problem to the airlines,” he added.It is, of course, already illegal to be drunk on a plane. Punishments include two years in prison or a £5,000 fine. So perhaps it’s no wonder fans of the time-honoured British airport tradition had stern words for O’Leary (whose company previously took a disruptive passenger to court for losses over a diverted flight).  “This guy can get fucked,” one X poster commented on the site. “If I’m at an airport at 6:00 AM, having a beer is pretty much the only comfort.” “Surely Ryanair should stop serving drinks on their morning flights before Michael O’Leary starts lecturing the rest of us?” another post read.Surely Ryanair should stop serving drinks on their morning flights before Michael O'Leary starts lecturing the rest of us?— Richard Barrett (@richardluddite) May 6, 2026“Time doesn’t exist in the airport,” yet another person commented on an Instagram post.View this post on InstagramThey’re joined in their disapproval by Wetherspoons boss Sir Tim Martin, who’s called O’Leary’s proposal a “big brother” approach. Speaking to The Times, he said: “A two-drink limit would be extraordinarily difficult to implement, short of breathalysing passengers, and would, in our opinion, be an overreaction, especially since many of the problems stem from incoming flights.”Still, not everyone hates the idea. “A two-drink limit feels fair to me,” one Instagram user said.“Alcohol can metabolise differently in [the] air, and no one wants to risk being sat next to someone who’s an angry drunk who’s metabolised four drinks like they’re eight and is now plastered and raving in a metal box.” “Ban ALL alcoholic drinks on airlines and don’t open airport bars until 12 noon,” an X poster added.The debate takes place days after Jet2 called for a cross-airline database of disruptive passengers.Related...How UK Fliers Can Avoid 'Nightmare' Queues And Missed Flights After New EU RulesFlight Expert Explains What Happens When A Baby Is Born On A PlaneJet Fuel Crisis: Everything We Know So Far About EU And UK Flight Cancellations

Two of the most successful businessmen in the British Isles - Michael O'Leary and Sir Tim Martin - are dividing the public over whether the 6am pre-flight pint ritual should end for good.

Two of the most successful businessmen in the British Isles - Michael O'Leary and Sir Tim Martin - are dividing the public over whether the 6am pre-flight pint ritual should end for good.

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has called for a ban on early morning airport alcohol sales after naming Glasgow Prestwick among the worst routes for drunk passengers.