A passenger was partially pulled through the opening before fellow travelers helped bring him back inside the aircraft.
THESSALONIKI, Greece — A Ryanair flight bound for Germany returned safely to northern Greece after an engine problem damaged a passenger window, causing sudden cabin decompression and leaving a man partially outside the aircraft, according to the airline and witness accounts.
Flight FR1879 departed Thessaloniki for Memmingen, Germany, on the morning of July 10. Shortly after takeoff, passengers heard a loud noise and oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling. The Boeing 737-800 then turned back toward Thessaloniki’s Macedonia Airport.
A 61-year-old Serbian passenger seated beside the damaged window was pulled toward the opening during the pressure loss, witnesses told news organizations. His head and shoulders reportedly passed outside the aircraft before his wife and nearby passengers held him and helped pull him back into the cabin.
The man had been wearing his seat belt, according to accounts from other passengers. He received medical care after the aircraft landed and was taken to a hospital with injuries described by local officials as friction burns, abrasions and shock. No life-threatening injuries were immediately reported.
Video recorded after the emergency appeared to show extensive damage to the right engine’s outer covering and an open space where the cabin window had been. The footage also showed oxygen masks hanging inside the passenger cabin. The images did not establish the precise sequence that caused the damage.
Early reports indicated that debris from the damaged engine may have struck the window. Aviation authorities had not issued a final determination, however, and the exact cause remained under investigation. Ryanair described the event more narrowly, saying a passenger window became dislodged during the flight.
Flight-tracking information showed the aircraft reached about 16,000 feet before descending and returning to Thessaloniki. Some initial reports placed it at a higher altitude, but no official investigative account had confirmed the aircraft’s precise altitude when the window failed.
Ryanair said the aircraft landed normally and passengers returned to the terminal. The airline arranged another plane to take them to Memmingen later that morning. No additional passenger or crew injuries were publicly reported.
The flight was operated for Ryanair by Malta Air using an 18-year-old Boeing 737-800, registration 9H-QEU. The aircraft belongs to the earlier 737 Next Generation series and is not a 737 Max model.
Aviation investigators are expected to examine the engine, its protective covering, the broken window and flight-recording data to determine what failed and whether debris struck the fuselage. Boeing said it was aware of the incident and was in contact with the airline.
No final investigation report had been released as of Sunday. The damaged aircraft remained subject to examination while aviation authorities worked to establish the cause of the engine failure and cabin decompression.
Author note: Last updated July 12, 2026.