Greece [Balkans], July 11: A passenger was partially sucked through a dislodged window on a Ryanair (RYA.I), opens new tab Boeing 737 flight shortly after takeoff from Thessaloniki in Greece on Friday, two airport sources said, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing.
The plane was scheduled to fly from Thessaloniki to Memmingen airport in Germany but returned to Thessaloniki "when a passenger window dislodged inflight," Ryanair said in a statement.
It is unclear what led to the broken window.
The Serbian national who was partially sucked through the window was transferred to the AHEPA University General Hospital in Thessaloniki but did not face life-threatening injuries, the Serbian consulate said, adding that doctors were determining the extent of the injuries.
Serbian media quoted a passenger telling Radio Thessaloniki that the man's head and shoulders were outside the aircraft before fellow passengers pulled him back in.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed the plane was a Boeing 737 NG - the version before the current MAX generation of 737 planes.
Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab said it was assisting the investigation led by North Macedonia over which the incident occurred. "We remain in contact with and continue to support our customer, Ryanair," the company said.
Ryanair did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on details of the incident, as well as for confirmation on the make of the plane and the engine.
"The aircraft landed normally and passengers returned to the terminal," Ryanair said in its statement.
Local media in Greece reported that a piece of engine broke off and smashed a window early in the flight, causing the cabin to decompress.
The two airport sources with knowledge of the incident relayed the same details to Reuters.
A video posted on social media appeared to show an uncontained engine failure on the damaged Boeing 737, with fan blades missing. Such a failure occurs when internal components like fan blades shatter and breach the casing, sending debris flying.
Flightradar24 showed a Boeing 737 NG jet en route to Memmingen diverted back to Thessaloniki on Friday morning.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
