Engine fan blade failure forces Ryanair passenger head into missing window

A fractured fan blade on a Ryanair aircraft on 10 July caused a section of the engine to detonate against the cabin panel. The impact ruptured a forward window, leaving a hole substantial enough to pull the head and right shoulder of passenger Ljubisa Karović into the void.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board’s provisional report, the incident occurred during climb out after departure from Thessaloniki, Greece. The crew detected a “high vibration” and temporarily reduced power, conducting engine‑check procedures before the vibrations ceased.

Power was later restored, but escalating vibrations and a loud bang led the crew to declare an emergency and glide the aircraft back to the departure airport. Passengers were told to prepare for the emergency and oxygen masks were deployed; the window panel was now missing, as confirmed by flight attendants.

Karović’s wife, Svetlana Grković, told the BBC she and two other passengers held him by the legs as he was partly lodged in the damaged window for several minutes before being escorted out.

The aircraft was operated by Ryanair’s subsidiary Malta Air, and the investigator noted that the engine had recently passed ultrasonic inspection in May with no faults found. Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary has suggested foreign‑object damage could have contributed to the failure.