NTSB Report Details How Ryanair Passenger Was Nearly Pulled From Boeing 737 Window

The National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report found that a fan blade broke off from the right engine of a Ryanair Boeing 737. Engine fragments damaged the fuselage and shattered a cabin window, according to the report. The aircraft was flying from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany, on July 10 with 149 passengers and six crew members on board.

As the plane climbed through 16,000 feet, pilots received a high-vibration indication for the right engine. The crew followed the checklist and vibrations initially decreased before increasing significantly. Investigators said there was a loud bang and a cabin altitude warning, prompting passengers and crew to put on oxygen masks as pilots began an emergency descent.

A flight attendant saw passengers standing and calling for help, then noticed the passenger in seat 11F was partially lodged in the damaged window area. Investigators wrote that other passengers managed to pull the injured passenger back into the cabin. One passenger got a metal box to block the hole, and another passenger who was a doctor attended to the injured person after they were moved to the row behind.

Investigators later found bird remains and feathers inside the engine and sent them to the Smithsonian Institution Feather Identification Lab for examination. Business Insider noted the incident was similar to a 2018 Southwest flight involving a Boeing 737 with the same type of CFM engines. The NTSB found that FAA-directed work meant to reduce the risk of broken fan blades being sent toward the fuselage had not yet been done on the Ryanair plane, though airlines are required to complete it by July 2028. Ryanair declined to comment until the investigation is concluded.