Woman recalls holding husband inside Ryanair plane after window failure

A Ryanair flight from Thessaloniki to Memmingen returned to Greece after a passenger window dislodged shortly after takeoff, leaving 61-year-old Ljubiša Karović partly pulled outside the aircraft before his wife and nearby passengers grabbed him and held on. Svetlana Grković Maksimovic said the struggle lasted about two minutes and that Karović repeatedly lost consciousness before the plane landed back in Thessaloniki.

The incident unfolded on Friday, July 10, 2026, on Ryanair flight FR1879, operated by the airline’s Malta Air subsidiary. Aviation reports identified the aircraft as a Boeing 737-800, registration 9H-QEU. Ryanair said the aircraft turned around when the window failed inflight, and the airline later arranged a replacement plane so the journey to Memmingen could continue.

Karović suffered neck and shoulder injuries, friction burns and facial injuries that required hospital treatment in Thessaloniki. Ryanair said one passenger requested and received medical assistance on the ground, though it did not identify the person. Karović was treated at AHEPA Hospital, where his condition drew attention after the terrifying midair emergency.

Witness accounts described a sudden bang before the cabin went into chaos, with oxygen masks hanging down as passengers reacted to the failure. Some aviation reports have suggested the damage may have been caused by debris from a possible engine problem, but that has not been officially confirmed. Authorities have opened an investigation into how the window failed and whether any preceding mechanical issue contributed.

The episode has quickly become a case study in how rare cabin failures can turn into life-threatening events within seconds. The fact that Karović survived was due not to luck alone but to the immediate response of his wife, the passengers around him and the crew’s decision to divert the aircraft back to Thessaloniki rather than continue to Germany with the cabin compromised.