Ryanair Group CEO Michael O'Leary has stated the airline will dispute a passenger's claim that he was partially sucked out of a window during a flight. Speaking at a meeting in Dublin on Thursday, O'Leary said the passenger was "certainly sucked towards the window" but did not "get out the window" during the incident.
Incident details and passenger account
On July 10, Ljubisa Karovic, 61, said he sustained neck and shoulder injuries when the window broke during a flight from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen near Munich, Germany. Karovic reported that the broken window caused him to become partially sucked out, with his head and right shoulder outside the aircraft, while his wife, Svetlana Grković Maksimović, and two other passengers reportedly clung onto his legs.
Karovic said he heard a loud "explosion" before objects began flying around the cabin and out of the hole. He also said he repeatedly lost consciousness during the ordeal.
O'Leary's response and dispute
O'Leary told reporters: "He wasn't partially out the window," adding: "No, no, no. Part of his face didn't get out the window", as reported by The Mirror. He said Karovic was "belted into the seat" and added: "We will be certainly at the end of the process disputing that he or any part of his anatomy will bend out the window."
O'Leary also acknowledged the passenger did suffer injuries, adding that the airline is "not trying to downplay it".
NTSB investigation and technical findings
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in the US is investigating the incident. A preliminary report found that a fan blade in the engine came apart shortly after the plane set off, with the broken fragments smashing the cabin window.
O'Leary continued: "Look, that incident is being investigated by the NTSB, and we have to await the outcome of the NTSB report." When asked if Ryanair has done any checks or fixes since the incident, he said: "There's nothing we can do at the moment. We are a participant in the investigation with Boeing, with the NTSB, with GE on the engine side. Most of the focus is what happened to the engine. Why was it not self-contained within the cowl of the engine?"
Compensation and legal proceedings
O'Leary also said his legal team were in touch with the passenger's lawyer and acknowledged Karovic was entitled to "some compensation" but did not believe there is basis "for any class action" or a pay out of "millions and millions".
The Serbian businessman previously told the Guardian he was "still strapped in" with his seatbelt when the horror unfolded. His wife said they were "eternally grateful" to one passenger who she believes is Albanian for his part in the rescue. She said: "He did all he could to bring him in and then tried to block the window, first with a bag that was immediately sucked out and then with a suitcase, which worked."
