Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary says he would 'happily' offer Rwanda deportation ... trends now
Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary today said he would 'happily' put on deportation flights to Rwanda if he had the available aircraft - as speculation continues about which airline ministers will be using.
The outspoken Irishman weighed into the controversy during an interview in London today - shrugging off warnings from the United Nations that companies involved in the scheme could be held responsible for any violations of international law.
Mr O'Leary said the UK Government had not approached Ryanair about the flights but insisted he would have no qualms about taking part.
'If it was the winter schedule and we had spare aircraft sitting around and if the government were looking for additional deportation flights or any other flights, we would happily quote for the business,' he told Bloomberg.
Rishi Sunak has said it will be '10 to 12 weeks' before the first plane carrying asylum seekers takes off on a one-way trip to Rwanda .
Michael O'Leary said today he would 'happily' put on deportation flights to Rwanda if he had the available aircraft
The Prime Minister promised 'multiple flights a month through the summer and beyond' and said an airfield was on standby with charter planes booked 'for specific slots'.
Although his Rwanda law finally passed through Parliament on Monday, finding an airline to operate the flights has been a major practical challenge - with the negative publicity around the scheme making it toxic for mainstream carriers.
Instead, ministers have been forced to turn to lesser known charter operators, but these have also faced intense lobbying from human rights groups seeking to scare them off.
Aviation expert Julian Bray said operating deportation flights carried many risks for airlines, comparing the scenario to 1997 film Con Air - where a US Ranger finds himself trapped in a prisoner transport plane when the passengers seize control.
He told MailOnline: 'You're taking a number of people who really don't want to go to the destination, so they will be under some form of security or restraint. That poses difficulties in itself.
'There will also need to be spaces for security staff, and because it's a long flight as well so you will need onboard catering.
'Overall, its fraught with problems - many of which have probably not been thought through.
'And of course there's also a commercial risk, because if a passenger airline is associated with the Rwanda flights there will be an awful lot of cancellations from people.'
Below, MailOnline runs through the airlines that have already been linked with the scheme - and reveals which one is currently considered the most likely candidate.
Privilege Style - Hired for Rwanda deportation flights in June 2022Privilege Style is based in Mallorca and says its VIP customers include major Spanish companies and La Liga teams.
It has also operated deportation flights for various EU countries and in December 2020 allegedly helped remove a group of people from the UK to Jamaica.
Privilege Style was due to deport people to Rwanda in June 2022 before the flight was grounded at the last minute after intervention by the European Court of Human Rights.
The first Rwanda deportation flight on the runway before it was grounded by judges in June 2022. It was operated by UK firm Privilege Style
The first flight in June was halted following an 11th hour intervention from the European Court of Human Rights
The Mallorca based airline had faced calls and public demonstrations urging it to abandon the arrangement and later confirmed it would not put on any more flights.
In a statement the operator said: 'It's important for us to clarify that we will never operate the flight to Rwanda since the one scheduled in June 2022, the reason for this controversy, was suspended and never flew; that we won't operate flights to Rwanda in the future.'
Freedom from Torture, which led the campaign, said it had received a letter from the airline detailing the decision in which it also asked the charity to now cease 'actions against our brand'.
British ministers may have hoped to find an ally in Rwanda's state airline, which is wholly owned by the Rwandan government.
The east African nation's flag carrier, RwandAir, was approached by British ministers last year, but it declined to take part because of potential damage to their 'brand'.
The same concerns about publicity make it all but certain that other commercial airlines are also off limits.
'RwandAir said ''No' because of the potential damage to their brand,' a Home Office insider told the FT, pointing out the 'irony' of the flag carrier distancing itself from a scheme
