RYANAIR PASSENGER INJURED AFTER WINDOW SMASHES IN MID-AIR ENGINE EMERGENCY

A Ryanair flight from Thessaloniki to Memmingen returned to Greece following a mid-air emergency in which a cabin window was damaged and a passenger was injured. The aircraft experienced an engine issue whilst flying over North Macedonia, prompting the pilot to begin descent back to Thessaloniki. During the descent, debris from the damaged engine detached and struck a cabin window, causing the window to fail. A passenger seated next to the affected window sustained injuries in the incident.

Witnesses reported that the passenger was partially drawn through the broken window. One eyewitness told Greek broadcaster ERT that "his head and shoulders were sticking out of the broken window." Video footage of the damaged window circulated on social media. The injured passenger, a 61-year-old man from Serbia, was taken to hospital in Thessaloniki by emergency services. Medical personnel reported he sustained a neck wound from the impact, bruising to other parts of his body, and was in shock, though conscious.

Ryanair stated that the aircraft "landed normally" and that "one passenger requested and received medical assistance on the ground in Thessaloniki." The airline arranged a replacement aircraft which departed Thessaloniki at 9:53 local time to transport the remaining passengers to Memmingen. The return flight to Thessaloniki took approximately 20 minutes following the pilot's decision to turn around.