Overview
- A fan blade in the right CFM56‑7B engine broke and detached, and fragments struck the fuselage and shattered a cabin window during the Malta Air-operated Ryanair flight on July 10.
- A 61-year-old passenger in window seat 11F was partially pulled through the hole and suffered serious injuries before other passengers and crew pulled him back inside; the aircraft declared an emergency and returned to land safely in Thessaloniki.
- The NTSB found bird remains in multiple engine areas and identified metallurgical features on the broken blade compatible with an evolving fatigue crack, but investigators have not reached a definitive root cause.
- Maintenance records show ultrasonic fan‑blade inspections in November 2025 and May 2026 reported no defects, crews logged four suspected bird strikes to that engine in the prior 12 months, and some FAA-recommended engine/cowl changes on the unit had not yet been implemented.
- The ongoing inquiry will combine Smithsonian identification, lab metallurgical testing and a review of inspection quality and maintenance work; a final NTSB report could take one to two years and its conclusion will shape any liability for the carrier or manufacturer.