Ryanair passenger partially sucked out of plane window after engine failure

A routine European flight turned terrifying when broken engine fragments smashed through a cabin window, pulling a passenger's head and right shoulder outside the aircraft. The incident occurred aboard an 18-year-old Boeing 737-8AS operated by Ryanair. The National Transportation Safety Board published its preliminary findings detailing how the aircraft suffered a severe engine failure shortly after takeoff. The flight was carrying passengers from Greece to Germany when the right engine experienced a fan-blade-out failure.

Serbian national Ljubisa Karovic, sitting in seat 11F, found himself partially lodged outside the cabin after shrapnel tore through the metal fuselage and shattered his window, leaving him seriously injured and in shock. His wife Svetlana Grković Maksimović and fellow passengers rushed to his aid, holding onto his legs for several minutes and pulling him back inside the aircraft before the crew managed an emergency landing.

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Timeline of the Flight

• Takeoff: The plane departs Thessaloniki International Airport in Greece heading for Memmingen, Germany.
• 7.5 minutes in: Flight crew receives a high engine vibration warning while climbing through Greek airspace at about 16,000 feet.
• Reduction: Pilots reduce engine power and run checks; vibrations temporarily cease and the crew continues to climb on autopilot, according to the report.
• The Failure: A loud bang sounds as the autopilot disengages and a fan blade breaks free, sending shrapnel into the fuselage and shattering the row 11 window while flight attendants see a small amount of smoke and oxygen masks deploy.
• Descent: An emergency is declared, and the flight returns to Thessaloniki for an uneventful landing.

Investigating authorities discovered evidence of fatigue cracking on the remnants of the broken blade, while eight other blades were deformed on the leading edge. The CFM56-7B26 engine model involved is built by a joint venture between French Safran Aircraft Engines and GE Aerospace. Shrapnel also left a dent in the plane near row 8, punctured the body below the wing, and gouged and dented the tail. Inspectors additionally recovered bird remains and feathers in the damaged engine, though no damage had been found during four suspected bird strikes reported within the preceding year.

The Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority asked the NTSB to assume full control of the inquiry. The agency's official account directly challenges previous remarks made by Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary.

During a July earnings call, O'Leary publicly downplayed the severity of the passenger's ordeal.

"Some of the more salacious reports that one passenger was halfway out the window, head out the window. Nobody was out any window"

Michael O'Leary, Ryanair boss, via CNN

He instead suggested that initial indications would point to foreign object damage to the engine on takeoff out of Thessaloniki.

That public commentary drew a sharp rebuke from NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy. In a formal letter, Homendy stated that accredited representatives and technical advisers are strictly prohibited from offering opinions, analyses, or public speculation on potential causes while an investigation remains active.

The incident bears striking similarities to a historical aviation disaster. In 2018, a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 fan blade snapped, shattering a window and sucking a woman’s head and torso outside of the plane, who later died of blunt force trauma. Because of that precedent, strict rules mandate frequent inspections of fan blades; the Ryanair plane's blades had undergone checks less than three weeks prior to the accident, while ultrasonic inspections in May showed no faults.

What to Watch Next

The NTSB investigation is expected to take between one and two years to finalize. The inquiry will ultimately produce a comprehensive final report determining the probable cause and any contributing factors for the aviation industry.