Overview
- A Ryanair Boeing 737-800 departed Thessaloniki for Memmingen and minutes into the climb a loud bang was followed by a cabin window dislodging and a sudden loss of pressure.
- Witnesses and crew said a 61-year-old male passenger was pulled partway through the opening and was pulled back into the cabin by his wife and other travellers.
- The crew declared an emergency, oxygen masks deployed, the jet descended and returned to Thessaloniki where the aircraft landed normally and remaining passengers were later flown on a replacement plane.
- The injured passenger was taken conscious to AHEPA University Hospital with friction burns and neck wounds, one other person received on-site care, and the aircraft remains grounded in Thessaloniki.
- Local media and officials say engine debris may have struck the fuselage and shattered the window, and aviation authorities have opened a developing probe that will examine engine components, maintenance records and component containment.