Ryanair passengers horrified as 61yo man ‘nearly sucked out of window’ mid-flight

A man flying aboard a Ryanair flight almost lost his life after he was almost sucked out of a window mid-air according to other passengers on board. The flight descended abruptly after passengers reported hearing an explosion and a 61-year-old Serbian man was treated for friction burns.

According to an article from BBC News the plane had left from the Greek city of Thessaloniki with tracking data showing that the plane was in the air for roughly 10 minutes before abruptly descending 9,000 feet. Passengers told local media that they had heard “some kind of explosion.”

In a statement the budget airline said that the Friday morning flight from Greece and bound for Memmingen in Germany, had been forced to return to the airport “shortly after take-off when a passenger window dislodged in flight.” 

The man was hanging out by his legs

President of the Panhellenic Federation of Public Hospital Employees, Michalis Giannakos, said that the man’s wife “held onto his legs for around five minutes to stop him from being sucked out.” Passengers corroborated the story, telling local outlets that the man was left with his head and upper torso hanging out of the aircraft.

Passengers described the moment it all happened, “We immediately realised there had been a decompression. There were screams… for a moment I thought someone had accidentally opened the emergency door,” passenger Christina claimed.

The plane safely returned to the runway and according to the airline, “The aircraft landed normally and passengers returned to the terminal. One passenger who was apparently sucked out requested and received medical assistance on the ground in Thessaloniki.” A Greek hospital official told local outlets that the 61-year-old Serbian man had been brought in for medical treatment of his burns.

What caused the window to break?

An investigation into the incident is currently underway with the Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority looking into the matter. While it’s not known what caused the window to dislodge in the first place, it’s believed that the Ryanair plane was 18 years old and was actually operated by a subsidiary of Ryanair called Malta Air.

Chris Brady, a retired Airline pilot, told the BBC that the incident “could have been worse” had the man’s seatbelt not been fastened. “We do, as captains always say to the passengers, please keep your seat belts fastened as a precaution in flight, even when we switch the belt signs off.” He said, adding, “And it’s for exactly this sort of thing or for turbulence encounters or whatever.”

While the passenger did receive friction burns during the incident, he could have been much worse off. “He is in shock, remains conscious,” Giannakos stated.