Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary has issued an unreserved apology for using the word 'rapists' to describe competitor high-fare airlines, acknowledging that his comments caused deep upset and offence, particularly to victims and survivors of sexual assault.

The apology, delivered in a video message on Friday, marks a full reversal by the airline chief, who had initially defended his choice of words and rejected calls from victims' advocacy groups and political figures to apologize.

The controversy arose on 10 September when O'Leary spoke to journalists at Ryanair's headquarters in Dublin ahead of the company's annual general meeting. Addressing rising flight prices across the aviation sector, he claimed passengers would abandon competitor airlines in favour of Ryanair because they could not afford to fly with what he termed the "high-fare rapists around Europe", explicitly citing Aer Lingus, Lufthansa, and British Airways.

When questioned at the time whether the language was appropriate or trivialised sexual violence, O'Leary insisted it was "absolutely" appropriate and stated he was happy to offend competitor airlines. His remarks drew immediate criticism from victims' support organisations, including the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and the National Women's Council of Ireland, as well as senior government figures in Ireland and the UK.

Following a letter from Dublin Rape Crisis Centre Chief Executive Rachel Morrogh offering training and requesting an apology, O'Leary initially issued a public response refusing to apologize. He maintained that he had described rape as a heinous crime and denied that his comments trivialised sexual violence.

In his video message on Friday, O'Leary stated that subsequent conversations with family, friends, and colleagues led him to understand the impact of his statement. He apologized directly to victims and survivors, stating that the word had been used carelessly and promising that such language would not be repeated in the future.