A U.S. National Transportation Safety Board report released Thursday reveals that broken engine parts shattered a passenger window on a Ryanair Boeing 737-800 over Greece on July 10, causing a 61-year-old traveler’s head to be sucked into the fuselage before fellow passengers pulled him to safety.
The July 10 Incident Over Greece
The flight departed from the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki on July 10, operated by Malta Air, a subsidiary of Ryanair. Minutes after takeoff, a fan blade broke off the right engine, sending fragments that pierced the fuselage and shattered a passenger window in row 11.
Flight attendants reported hearing continuous vibration and seeing smoke or fog inside the cabin before oxygen masks deployed. Passengers noticed the man sitting in the row 11 window seat partially lodged in the broken window and pulled him back into the cabin. The 61-year-old passenger sustained neck and shoulder injuries and friction burns.
Flight records indicate the narrow-body aircraft, delivered new to Ryanair in 2008, climbed past 15,000 feet about six minutes after departure before descending to approximately 6,000 feet to burn fuel for 30 minutes
prior to returning to Thessaloniki about an hour after takeoff.
NTSB Investigation and Maintenance Records
International aviation rules permitted Greece’s Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority to hand the investigation to the National Transportation Safety Board, with Greece participating in the probe. In its preliminary report, the safety board stated that it found bird remains, including feathers, inside the failed engine.
Maintenance records reviewed by investigators show that the fan blades on the right engine had undergone ultrasonic inspections in November 2025 and May 2026 without showing damage. However, the NTSB noted that flight crews had reported four suspected bird strikes to that same engine over the preceding year, with bird remains recovered after two of those events.
Tensions Over Public Statements
The NTSB publicly reprimanded Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary after he told investors that investigators were focusing exclusively on foreign object damage rather than the aircraft’s age or maintenance history. The agency clarified that investigators had not ruled out any factors and that O’Leary lacked authorization to discuss the probe.
Prior to the NTSB’s findings, Ryanair issued a statement noting that the flight returned to Thessaloniki shortly after takeoff when a passenger window dislodged in-flight.
Following the emergency landing, the aircraft returned to the terminal where one passenger requested and received medical assistance.
Historical Context and Prior CFM Engine Failures
There have been at least two previous incidents where parts from an engine manufactured by CFM failed and breached a passenger cabin. In 2018, a woman died on a Southwest Airlines flight after being partially sucked out of a broken window following a similar blade-related engine breakup. A Southwest jet experienced a comparable engine failure over Florida in 2016.
The Associated Press submitted emailed requests for comment regarding the NTSB’s preliminary findings to Ryanair, Boeing, and engine maker CFM International.
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