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A man who was partially sucked out of a Ryanair jet after a passenger window blew out midflight says the sound of the explosion still haunts him more than a week later.
"Its the noise before the chaos," 61-year-old Ljubisa Karović told The Guardian in an interview published July 21. "It's the noise that is always there when I close my eyes to sleep."
Karović, a Serbian national, was traveling from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany, on July 10 when a window on the Boeing 737 broke during the flight, forcing the aircraft to return to Thessaloniki for an emergency landing. Ryanair previously said one passenger required medical assistance after landing.
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The incident remains under investigation by aviation authorities, with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board saying it will assume control of the investigation, according to the Associated Press. USA TODAY has reached out to the National Transportation Safety Board for additional comment on the investigation.
'I am lucky': Passenger says seatbelt may have saved his life
Karović said he had been asleep in his window seat when a loud explosion woke him moments before the cabin rapidly lost pressure.
His attorney, Vasilis Tsiaras, told The Guardian that Karović was pulled out of the window "from his chest up" and immediately lost consciousness. The lawyer said the plane was flying at about 15,000 feet and traveling at more than 600 kilometers per hour when the incident occurred.
Karović said he later learned he fainted multiple times during the ordeal and suffered injuries to his head, neck and right arm. Doctors have instructed him to wear a neck brace for at least six weeks while they determine whether surgery will be necessary.
"I am lucky," Karović told The Guardian. "I don't remember much and my head and neck still hurt but I am still alive. It could have been the seatbelt, the fact that I was still strapped in. But maybe it is fate."
Wife says passengers rushed to help
Karović's wife, Svetlana Grković, previously said the decompression left her husband hanging outside the aircraft up to his chest for about two minutes while passengers fought to pull him back inside.
She told Serbian outlet Nova, as reported by The Guardian, that fellow passengers, not the cabin crew, initially came to his aid. One passenger unsuccessfully tried to block the opening with a bag before using a suitcase, which remained in place.
Ryanair disputed claims that its crew failed to respond, saying airline procedures require crew members to remain seated with seatbelts fastened and oxygen masks on during rapid decompression. The airline said that once the aircraft reached a safe altitude, cabin crew moved Karović to another seat beside his wife, arranged for an onboard doctor to assist him and coordinated medical care upon landing.
Investigation continues
Local Greek officials initially said debris from the aircraft's engine may have shattered the window, though investigators have not confirmed the cause.
Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary previously said the initial indications pointed to possible foreign object damage to the engine during takeoff but stressed that the cause had not been determined.
Karović, a frequent flyer before the incident, told The Guardian he now struggles with the psychological aftermath but hopes others will learn from his experience.
"Always make sure to wear your seatbelt," he said. "I don't want anyone to suffer what happened to me."
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at [email protected], or on X @athompsonUSAT.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Passenger shares terror after Ryanair window blows out
