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Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has provided an update following an incident where a passenger was nearly sucked out of an aircraft window.
Ljubiša Karovi, 61, was dragged from his seat and partially pulled through the window earlier this month.
His wife, Svetlana Grković Maksimović, had to desperately hold onto his legs as the frightening scene unfolded on the flight from Thessaloniki in Greece to Memmingen in Germany. The aircraft was flying over North Macedonia when the pilot reportedly detected an engine malfunction and opted to turn back to Greece.
Several passengers reported hearing an explosion, and Maksimović suspects part of the engine burst, resulting in debris piercing the window and triggering cabin decompression.
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While unveiling Ryanair's financial results for the April-June quarter, Michael O'Leary stated: "Initial indication would suggest it looks like foreign object damage to the engine on takeoff at Thessaloniki, but we don't have, we can't say that definitively."
He mentioned that a preliminary report on the incident would be released in approximately 28 days, with a more comprehensive report to follow.
Earlier, Ryanair chief executive Eddie Wilson seemed to validate in an interview with RTE News that the engine had been damaged. He stated: "Well, I mean, anyone who's looked at the photographs can see what has, you know, there are photographs there of the, clearly there's damage to the engine.
"But like, you know, I'm not going to speculate on that. That aircraft will be, it'll be investigated through the Greek authorities. We understand then we will put that out to the NTSB, which are the American investigators."
American investigators are being brought in due to the aircraft being an American-manufactured Boeing 737-800. When questioned about whether he could assure the safety of passengers traveling with Ryanair during the summer months, Mr Wilson responded: "When you're flying about 1.2 million flights per year, you rely on having the best, most modern aircraft and the best-trained crews, and that's actually what was demonstrated last Friday in Thessaloniki.
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"It is a serious incident. It'll be investigated, and we will take whatever recommendations come out of that. We are in the aviation industry. Things happen from time to time, but again I would say here, a fantastic job done by our crew in very difficult circumstances.
"Aircraft are maintained every night," he continued. "There's a full schedule that's set down by the regulators, and Ryanair adheres to those, fully, as do all other airlines.
"And what happens is, when you're doing 1.2 million flights per year, things happen from time to time, but people can be assured that we've got the best-trained crews, and that was demonstrated last week."
While investigators haven't officially confirmed it, the BBC reports that a technical consultant hired by the family suspects the incident started with a malfunction in the aircraft's right engine, resulting in debris hitting and shattering the cabin window prior to the sudden depressurization of the cabin.
The aircraft - thought to have been an 18-year-old plane - was flown by Malta Air, a Ryanair subsidiary. In a statement, Ryanair explained its Friday morning service from Thessaloniki to Memmingen turned back 'shortly after take-off when a passenger window dislodged in flight'.
"The aircraft landed normally and passengers returned to the terminal. One passenger requested and received medical assistance on the ground in Thessaloniki."
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