On the morning of 10 July, a Ryanair Boeing 737 operating flight FR1879 from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany, suffered a sudden cabin depressurisation after a passenger window shattered shortly after take-off. A 61-year-old Serbian national, Ljubisa Karović, seated at the window, was partially sucked out of the aircraft, his head and right arm exposed to the outside air for what witnesses described as up to two minutes. Fellow passengers, including his wife who was seated three rows behind, managed to pull him back into the cabin and used a suitcase to block the ruptured window. The aircraft returned to Thessaloniki, where Mr Karović was hospitalised with burns, bruising, and neck injuries requiring a brace for at least six weeks.

Medical sources in Thessaloniki confirmed Mr Karović was discharged on 17 July after a week of treatment. He has since described the event as an ‘explosion’ and reports hearing the sound each night when trying to sleep. His lawyer, Vasilis Tsiaras, stated that his client lost consciousness multiple times and ‘dipped in and out of death.’ The passenger’s wife, Svetlana Grković, told Greek media that an Albanian passenger acted heroically to pull her husband back inside, while cabin crew were ‘paralysed by fear.’ Ryanair, however, issued a statement saying its crew followed emergency protocols—securing themselves and passengers during the rapid descent—and then assisted Mr Karović once at a safe altitude, with a doctor on board providing care.

The cause of the window failure remains under investigation. Ryanair’s chief executive, Michael O’Leary, said early findings point to ‘foreign object damage to the engine on take-off,’ but stressed that no definitive conclusion had been reached. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has taken over the inquiry from Greek authorities, with a draft report expected within 28 days. The aircraft, operated by Ryanair subsidiary Malta Air, had undergone a full overhaul within the past two years, according to the airline.

Mr Karović’s legal team in Greece has signalled it will pursue compensation, criticising the airline for what it describes as a lack of direct support after the incident. The passenger, a factory owner from Serbia, has said he is unsure if he will fly again. The investigation continues, and no formal determination of responsibility has been made.