Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has denied that a passenger on one of the budget airline’s flights was partially sucked out of a broken window and said the victim will not be entitled to a large compensation payout.
O’Leary’s comments to the press came after Ryanair’s annual general meeting in Dublin and follow a July incident aboard Ryanair flight FR1879 from Thessaloniki to Memmingen, near Munich, operated by Malta Air.
One of the plane’s windows broke at an altitude of nearly 16,000 feet, apparently after being struck by fragments from one of the aircraft’s engines. The ensuing decompression caused oxygen masks to deploy, while passenger and Serbian businessperson Ljubisa Karovic, 61, was pulled towards the void.
The aircraft that partially sucked a 61-year-old Serbian man out of the window is a Boeing 737-800 (Next Generation), not a B737 MAX. It's an 18-year-old airframe, MSN 36569, built in Renton and delivered to Ryanair in March 2008, registered as EI-DYF. It later entered service… pic.twitter.com/lIO2ByXp3a
— Turbine Traveller (@Turbinetraveler) July 10, 2026
Witnesses at the time said he was pulled partially through the window despite wearing his seatbelt and had to be prevented from being sucked out of the aircraft by fellow passengers. The gaping window was eventually blocked with a piece of metal provided by a flight attendant, and the plane returned safely to its Greek point of departure, where Karovic was taken to hospital to be treated for shock, exposure and friction burns.
Despite those accounts, O’Leary has said Ryanair disputes the claim that Karovic was at any point outside the aircraft. “He wasn’t partially out the window,” the CEO said repeatedly. “No, no, no. Part of his face didn’t get out the window. We don’t think any part of his body got out the window, but he was certainly sucked in very dramatic circumstances towards the window.”
O’Leary went on to confirm that this would be the airline’s legal position in court, saying: “We will be certainly at the end of the process disputing that he or any part of his anatomy went out the window.”
A Ryanair (Malta Air) 737’s window shattered climbing through 15,000 ft after departing Thessaloniki earlier today. A passenger was partial sucked out, but was retrieved by other passengers and crew. The aircraft burned fuel before landing safely at SKG. https://t.co/NPpT6hZ7fa pic.twitter.com/hSOKs4ylDN
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) July 10, 2026
The incident is still under investigation by the United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) after the Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority handed over responsibility, an approach permitted under international aviation law. Preliminary findings indicate that an engine fan blade broke after take-off and struck the window.
O’Leary’s recent remarks drew attention to those findings. “We are a participant in the investigation with Boeing, with the NTSB, with GE [General Electric Aerospace] on the engine side,” he said, adding: “Most of the focus is what happened to the engine. Why was it not self-contained within the cowl of the engine?”
Known for his combative personality, O’Leary did not go as far as denying that Karovic would be entitled to a form of legal reparation, noting that the passenger would probably receive “some compensation” but not “millions and millions.” The Irish CEO also ruled out the prospect of a “class action” lawsuit involving affected passengers.
Inside the AGM, O’Leary had to deal with an ejection himself, as the airline’s shareholders rejected a €150-million pay deal with a 10-million share option for the CEO through 2032.
