Ryanair flight window cracked by engine debris, passenger nearly sucked out

A passenger narrowly escaped being sucked out of a Ryanair aircraft after a window shattered mid-flight, a preliminary report from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has revealed. Debris ejected from an engine struck the window, causing the near-fatal incident.

The flight, en route from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany, experienced severe engine vibrations and a loud explosion about seven minutes after takeoff. The NTSB's preliminary findings indicate that a fan blade detached from the No. 2 engine, sending fragments through the fuselage. These fragments pierced the aircraft's skin, shattering a window in row 11, where 61-year-old Lyubisha Karovic was seated. He sustained serious injuries as his head and upper body were pulled towards the broken window before his wife and crew members managed to pull him back inside.

An examination of the detached fan blade revealed signs of fatigue cracking, a condition that appeared more advanced than expected for the aircraft's flight hours. While bird remains, including feathers, were found in the damaged engine, investigators have not yet determined if a bird strike was the direct cause of the blade's failure. The aircraft made an emergency landing back in Thessaloniki.

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary had initially suggested an "external object" damaged the engine during takeoff, a statement that drew criticism from the NTSB chair for releasing unconfirmed information during an ongoing investigation. The NTSB expects its investigation, which typically takes one to two years, to determine the probable cause and contributing factors to the incident.

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