Wife Recalls Harrowing Ordeal
Svetlana Grković, whose husband was almost sucked out of a Ryanair plane mid-flight, has described the terrifying moment she grabbed his legs, thinking, “If we die, we die together.” Ljubisa Karović was sucked headfirst out of the aircraft on Friday after an engine failure caused parts to smash the acrylic window.
“Half of his body was sticking out of the plane,” Grković told Serbian outlet Nova. “I immediately reacted and grabbed his legs,” she said, adding that he was “outside up to his chest” for two minutes. With the help of two other passengers, she managed to pull him back inside. Karović lost consciousness three times during the ordeal.
Flight Details and Emergency Descent
The couple were on a flight operated by Ryanair subsidiary Malta Air from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany. About 10 minutes after takeoff, tracking data shows the plane suddenly dropped 9,000 feet (2,700 meters). Passengers said Karović kept his seatbelt on and others helped hold him while his upper torso was in the slipstream outside.
The 61-year-old remains hospitalized in Greece, “seriously injured and in shock,” according to Grković. “His hand is particularly badly injured, and he’s got burns. He’s not able to communicate, he doesn’t remember the whole event.”
Passenger Accounts and Investigation
Images and videos show oxygen masks dropping from the ceiling as the cabin depressurized. One passenger told Radio Thessaloniki that those on board “thought the plane was going down.” “The decompression was extreme,” she said. “It felt like we couldn’t breathe.” Another passenger said there were screams and “for a moment I thought someone had accidentally opened the emergency door.”
Thessaloniki airport’s operator, Fraport Greece, said the incident is “currently under investigation by the Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority.” Ryanair stated that the flight “returned to Thessaloniki shortly after takeoff when a passenger window dislodged in flight” and that “the aircraft landed normally.” A replacement aircraft was sourced for other passengers to complete the trip to Memmingen the same day.
