He might not quite be in Steve Jobs' league just yet, but Nokia CEO Stephen Elop's continued no-nonsense approach to both his own business, and the activities of his rivals, is winning him fans.

In a tweet defending Nokia's partnership with Microsoft, Elop turned his attention to Google's Vic Gundotra, whose own tweet that "two turkeys don't make an eagle" in reference to the deal made headlines the world over before it had even been announced.

Fight with flight

Elop, though not indulging in anything approaching a flame war, chose to less-than-subtly adjust Gundotra's assessment of his company's partnership with the Redmond giant.

In his view, Nokia's decision to back Windows Phone 7 has much more in common with the ingenuity and effort behind the Wright brothers' first flight.

"Or this," Elop says in direct reply to the two turkeys claim, following up with "Two bicycle makers, from Dayton Ohio, one day decided to fly."

New dawn

It's a refreshingly open way for a CEO of a major corporation to respond to what many perceived as a light hearted, but if pertinent, comment by Gundotra.

It will have to go some way, however, before it tops the internal memo Elop sent to Nokia employees before the Windows Phone 7 announcement.

Already recognised by many as a seminal moment in Elop's admittedly short reign so far, it's likely the CEO's stark assessment of his company's position has been fundamental in Nokia's efforts to reach out to his former employer, Microsoft.