A routine Ryanair flight from Greece to Germany descended into terror last Friday when a cabin window shattered, leaving a 61-year-old passenger partially outside the aircraft as his wife and fellow travellers fought to pull him back inside.
Svetlana Maksimovic told Greek public broadcaster ERT that “chaos broke out” as her husband, Ljubisa Karovic, was dragged toward the opening during the frightening mid-air emergency.
Mr Karovic was sitting beside the window when it suddenly broke shortly after the aircraft took off from Thessaloniki for Memmingen in southern Germany.
His seatbelt kept him from being completely ejected, Ms Maksimovic said. She and two other passengers hauled him back into the cabin while oxygen masks dropped and panic swept through the flight.
“The lady sitting next to me and I tried to put him back inside. A strong wind had pulled him out, but luckily he was wearing his seatbelt, so he didn’t fall off the seat.
“Then a man came to help us. I think he told us he was from Albania, but I’m not sure.”
Mr Karovic, who is from Serbia, remains in a Thessaloniki hospital with injuries to his neck and shoulder, friction burns and severe psychological trauma, according to his wife.
Ms Maksimovic said he is confined to bed, wearing a neck collar and unable to move. She does not yet know when doctors will allow him to leave hospital.
“They put a Holter monitor on him today. They needed to check his heart because they could see that something wasn’t right.
“He has to stay in the ward, but I don’t know how long for.
‘Chaos broke out’
Recalling the ordeal, Ms Maksimovic said her husband “was sucked out up to his chest” when the window gave way.
“He was outside the aircraft for about one and a half to two minutes. I was sitting behind him, and the woman sitting next to him grabbed his arm. Three of us were pulling him back inside,” she said.
She added: “The oxygen masks dropped, and chaos broke out.
“My husband lost consciousness three times. Someone tried to block the broken window with a suitcase, but it was immediately sucked out of the aircraft.”
Oxygen masks deployed and panic spread (Credit: Despoina Papapavlou)
The Boeing 737-800, operated by Malta Air on Ryanair’s behalf, turned back after the emergency and landed safely in Thessaloniki.
Ryanair said the diversion followed the dislodging of a passenger window during the flight. The airline confirmed that one passenger needed medical treatment.
The other passengers later continued to Memmingen aboard a replacement aircraft.
Greek authorities, aviation safety investigators and technical specialists have opened an inquiry to establish what caused the incident.
Early reports suggest debris from an apparent engine failure may have hit the window and caused rapid cabin depressurisation. Investigators, however, have not confirmed the cause.
Read more:Eyewitness photo shows broken window inside Ryanair plane
