Ryanair has got itself in hot water when it ran adverts depicting Sir Stelios as Pinocchio and suggesting he was lying about Easyjet’s punctuality. The “Pinocchio” adverts over which Sir Stelios was taking legal action were published in the Daily Telegraph and the Guardian in January and February. In the ad they mentioned him as “Easyjet’s – Mr Late Again” and called on him to “stop hiding the truth” about Easyjet’s on-time performance. 
Mr O’Leary of Ryanair was forced to apologise, saying Sir Stelios was not personally accountable for Easyjet not publishing weekly information on their on-time performance. In response Sir Stelios dedicated the victory to everyone “who have suffered verbal abuse at the hands of O’Leary”. In a libel suit that was eventually settled out of court, with Sir Stelios accepting £50,100 in damages, which he will donate to his philanthropic foundation.
For some time now the rivalry between the two low-cost airliners has often been centred around advertising. In the past both carriers have referred one another to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over various ad campaigns. Only this Wednesday Ryanair was punished by the ASA for misleading customers with low fare offers, following a complaint from Easyjet.