Engine Parts Flew Off, Broke Ryanair Plane Window: NTSB

Key Points:

• A Ryanair Boeing 737-800 experienced a fan blade failure in its right engine shortly after takeoff from Thessaloniki, Greece, on July 10, causing broken engine parts to shatter a window and nearly suck a 61-year-old passenger partially out of the plane.
• Passengers and flight attendants intervened quickly to pull the man back inside, after he suffered neck and shoulder injuries and friction burns; oxygen masks deployed following loud vibrations and smoke or fog inside the cabin.
• The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the investigation with participation from Greek authorities, noting bird remains inside the engine and multiple reported bird strikes over the past year, though the exact cause of the fan blade failure remains undetermined.
• The NTSB criticized Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary for prematurely commenting on the investigation's focus, emphasizing that no conclusions have been made regarding foreign object damage, aircraft age, or maintenance history.
• Maintenance records indicated recent ultrasonic inspections of the engine's fan blades found no damage, underscoring the complexity of determining the failure's root cause amid ongoing probe efforts.