A Ryanair passenger traveling from Greece to Germany was "sucked" out up to his shoulders through a plane window that shattered during the flight on Friday. According to reports in the German newspaper Bild and the British Daily Mail, other passengers sitting near the man, including his wife, held onto him as his head was trapped outside the shattered window and tried to prevent more of his body from being pulled out of the aircraft.
The terrifying incident occurred on a Boeing 737-800 aircraft traveling from Thessaloniki to Memmingen. The plane took off at 5:55 a.m. local time, but shortly afterward was forced to turn around following the dramatic incident and land back at the airport from which it departed.
Ryanair plane window that shattered during the flight
Shortly after takeoff, at an altitude of about 20,000 feet, a loud explosion was heard. A witness on the flight told the German news agency DPA that one of the windows shattered and that the man sitting next to it was, as reported, "sucked" outward. "His head and shoulders were sticking out of the shattered window," another witness told Greece's ERT broadcaster.
The man's wife, reportedly a 61-year-old Serbian citizen, held onto his legs for about five minutes. Other passengers eventually managed to pull him back into the cabin as oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling.
A spokesperson for the airline issued a statement that did not provide details about the incident:
"Ryanair flight from Thessaloniki to Memmingen on Friday morning returned to Thessaloniki shortly after takeoff after a passenger window became dislodged during the flight. The aircraft landed normally and passengers returned to the terminal. One passenger requested and received medical assistance on the ground in Thessaloniki. In order to minimize any delay, a replacement aircraft was arranged to bring passengers to Memmingen and departed Thessaloniki at 9:53 a.m. local time."
The Daily Mail reported that according to publicly available flight data, the aircraft landed back in Thessaloniki one hour and 14 minutes after departing. The Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reported that the man who was "sucked" through the window suffered a neck injury from the impact, as well as abrasions and burns. He was reportedly conscious but, as expected, in a state of shock. A pregnant woman who was also on the flight was taken to a hospital. According to local media, her condition was described as good and she was later released home.
'The flight attendants lost it, there were screams'
Greek media outlets speculated that the unusual incident may have been caused by part of the aircraft's engine becoming detached and damaging the window, though the claim has not been confirmed. Reports said the incident occurred over northern Macedonia and that the window was struck by a piece of metal debris that detached from one of the engines.
'For a moment I thought someone had accidentally opened the emergency door'
Although social media users quickly pointed out that passengers should wear their seat belts on planes, one passenger said the man was indeed wearing his seat belt.
She said: "There was a sound like a tire exploding. There was panic with screams, screams and noises because we immediately lost altitude due to decompression. For a moment I thought someone had accidentally opened the emergency door."
'We all immediately put on our masks'
According to her, "The flight attendants lost it. We all immediately put on our masks. It felt like a very long time before we understood what was happening."
Regarding the man who was "sucked" through the window, she said: "They grabbed him and held onto him. Fortunately, he had not taken off his seat belt. His head was completely outside the aircraft. The women sitting next to him pulled him back. Several doctors also went to help him."