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Passenger partially sucked out of Ryanair Boeing 737 window during flight

By The Media Fact Checker teamUpdated 4 hours ago3 articles from 3 sources

Consensus Summary

A 61-year-old man was partially sucked out of a Ryanair Boeing 737 NG window during a flight from Thessaloniki to Memmingen on Friday, causing severe injuries. The incident occurred shortly after takeoff, with the plane descending rapidly by 9,000ft (2,700m) due to cabin decompression from a dislodged window, likely caused by an engine failure. His wife and other passengers managed to pull him back inside before the aircraft landed safely in Thessaloniki. The man remains hospitalized with serious injuries, including burns and a disfigured face, and is reportedly in shock. Investigations by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, the US National Transportation Safety Board, and Greek authorities are underway. The incident has drawn comparisons to a [DATE UNVERIFIED] Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 NG case involving a similar engine failure.

✓ Verified by 2+ sources

Key details reported by multiple sources:

  • A 61-year-old man was partially pulled through a cabin window on a Ryanair Boeing 737
  • The incident occurred on Friday
  • The flight was from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany
  • The aircraft was a Boeing 737 NG operated by Ryanair’s Malta Air subsidiary
  • The plane descended rapidly by 9,000ft (2,700m) after the incident
  • The passenger was taken to hospital with severe injuries, including burns and a disfigured face
  • The incident involved a window dislodging due to an engine failure, causing cabin decompression
  • The aircraft landed safely in Thessaloniki, and passengers returned to the terminal

Points of Difference

Details reported by only one source:

The Age
  • The incident was compared to a 2018 Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 NG incident where a fan blade caused a broken window and a passenger died
  • The US National Transportation Safety Board previously ordered Boeing to redesign the fan cowl structure on the 737 NG aircraft, the model before the 737-MAX
  • The passenger’s hand was particularly badly injured, and he lost consciousness multiple times
ABC News
  • The man’s wife, Svetlana Maksimovic, described his face as 'completely disfigured'
  • The incident occurred 'last week' and was described as 'Saturday’s incident'
  • The couple hired a lawyer, and the Greek prosecutor launched a separate inquiry
The Guardian
  • The passenger was sucked out 'headfirst' and was 'outside up to his chest' for 10 minutes
  • The couple had been on the flight for about 10 minutes before the incident

Contradictions

Conflicting information between sources:

  • The Guardian and THEAGE say the incident occurred on Friday, but ABC refers to it as 'last week' and 'Saturday’s incident'
  • THEAGE and Guardian mention the flight was operated by Ryanair’s Malta Air subsidiary, but ABC does not specify the subsidiary
  • ABC states the man’s wife is Svetlana Maksimovic, while THEAGE and Guardian refer to her as Svetlana Grković
  • THEAGE and Guardian describe the passenger as being 'partially sucked out' and 'half of his body sticking out,' while ABC says 'partially pulled through a cabin window' without specifying the extent

Source Articles

THEAGE

‘If we die, we die together’: Wife details ordeal after man partially sucked out of plane window

A terrified woman has revealed how she saved her husband as he was nearly sucked through a shattered window on a Ryanair flight.

5 hours ago
ABC

Wife recounts horror as husband sucked out of Ryanair plane window

A woman describes hearing a bang before seeing her husband almost get sucked into space during a flight from Greece to Germany.

5 hours ago
GUARDIAN

‘If we die, we die together’: wife of Ryanair passenger almost sucked through window speaks

Svetlana Grković says she grabbed her husband’s legs while he was ‘outside up to his chest’ for two minutes Ryanair passenger almost sucked out of window during flight Ryanair has axed family seating policy – but kids’ fees add up A woman who saved her husband from being completely sucked out of a Ryanair plane mid-flight has said she thought as she held on to his legs: “If we die, we die together.” Ljubisa Karović was sucked out headfirst on the flight on Friday after an engine failure resulted

23 hours ago