Norwegian Air’s Global Expansion Draws Fire From a Jilted Rival

Norwegian Air “is not long for this world,” says Michael O’Leary, the chief executive of Ryanair Holdings Plc, itself in turmoil thanks to a pilot-staffing pinch that’s killed travel plans for hundreds of thousands of customers.

“That’s just nonsense,” says Norwegian CEO Bjorn Kjos. Norwegian is under investor scrutiny given its large order of more than 200 aircraft, split roughly between Airbus SE and Boeing Co., to support a global growth spurt. Industry observers caution that even with low fuel and labor costs, a glut of competitive capacity and cheap fares may well injure Norwegian’s long-term financial health as it digests all the new planes. Especially if economies on either side of the Atlantic hit a rough patch.