Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary got a rude welcome in Brussels on Thursday when he received two cream pies to the face while standing next to a cardboard cutout of EU chief Ursula von der Leyen.

The tarts were landed by two women environmental activists as O'Leary was holding a one-man protest outside the European Commission against repeated air traffic controllers' strikes in the EU impacting his low-cost Irish airline, Europe's biggest by passenger numbers.

"Welcome in Belgium," said one of the activists as she planted her pie, according to video of the scene broadcast by Belgian news channels LN24 and RTL Info.

"Stop the pollution" from planes said the other activist as she smeared her pastry on O'Leary before both walked off.

The Ryanair chief, who regularly courts publicity, laughed off the stunt, calmly telling an assistant to take his soiled jacket away to be cleaned.

Ryanair's feed on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, later posted that O'Leary got a "warm welcome in Brussels".

"Passengers so happy with our routes and petition that they're celebrating with cake," it said.

The activists' pie protest came as Ryanair pilots in Belgium announced a new strike on September 14 and 15 — their fourth stoppage in two months — over pay and working conditions.

rmb/lth

© Agence France-Presse