Passenger partially sucked out of airplane window on flight from Greece
A man was partially sucked out of a dislodged window on a flight from Greece to Germany on Friday, prompting fellow passengers to pull him back inside the aircraft, reports BritPanorama.
The 61-year-old passenger sustained neck and shoulder injuries, along with friction burns, according to a Greek hospital official who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation.
The incident occurred on a morning flight from Thessaloniki to Memmingen, near Munich, operated by Ryanair subsidiary Malta Air. Ryanair confirmed that the flight “returned to Thessaloniki shortly after take-off when a passenger window dislodged in-flight.”
Accounts from passengers indicated they heard a loud bang, oxygen masks deployed, and the plane started losing altitude. One passenger, identified as Christina, described the moment as one of panic as some screamed when they realized the pressure had dropped and altitude was lost.
“His whole head, neck, shoulders” were out of the window, she recounted, noting that those seated near the man quickly pulled him back inside. “Most people had fallen asleep; we had closed our eyes. We heard a sound, I’d describe it like a tire bursting, … but very loud,” she added.
The aircraft landed safely and the passengers returned to the terminal. One individual sought and received medical assistance on-site, while the airline later arranged a replacement aircraft to continue the journey to Germany.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was notified of the incident and reported that the flight turned back due to “a right engine issue and cabin decompression.” The agency will assist in the investigation, which will be led by the Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation Committee of North Macedonia.
The aircraft involved was a Boeing 737-800, with a maximum capacity of 189 passengers, and had been delivered to Ryanair in 2008. Flight records indicate the plane ascended past 15,000 feet (4,570 meters) approximately six minutes post-departure before descending to around 6,000 feet (1,830 meters) to burn fuel before returning to Thessaloniki roughly an hour later.
As details emerge from this urgent situation, the focus shifts to the investigation and the measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
