Man Partially Sucked Out of Ryanair Plane Says Airline Only Offered to Rebook Flight

Ljubisa Karovic is still wearing a neck brace and battling nightmares a few weeks after being partially sucked through a shattered window on a Ryanair flight — and he says the airline still hasn’t picked up the phone to check on him.

Karovic, 61, is recovering at a seaside villa in Katerini, Greece, after the window beside his seat blew out on Ryanair flight FR1879 from Thessaloniki to Memmingen, Germany, on July 10, according to a report the Daily Mail published on Sunday, July 26. He now has to wear a neck brace for six weeks, may need surgery, and he was treated for burns to his face, hand and arm.

But it’s the airline’s silence that has stung nearly as much as his injuries.

“All we’ve had is emails to my son, who booked our flights, asking if we want to rebook and asking how I was. But nobody from the company has contacted me directly, not even a phone call to show any concern,” Karovic said, according to the outlet.

His wife, Svetlana Grkovic Maksimovic, was seated three rows back when the window gave way roughly 20 minutes into the flight, sending Karovic partway out of the fuselage while he was still belted into seat 11F, per the report. She rushed forward and grabbed his legs, and nearby passengers joined in a struggle that lasted up to two minutes to pull him back inside.

“It was very hard because I was pulling him with all my might from one side and there was this strong force pulling him away on the other,” she said.

The couple also accused the cabin crew of freezing during the crisis.

“When we were battling to hold onto Ljubisa, the crew didn’t do anything, they looked more scared than us,” Maksimovic, 48, continued.

Ryanair disputed that account, with group chief financial officer Neil Sorahan saying, “Our customer care team have actively been in touch with the family since the incident,” and crediting the crew with a “phenomenal job,” according to the article. The airline also said the crew “attended to and assisted Mr Karovic” once the plane reached a safe altitude.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating and expects a draft report in about 28 days, the outlet reported.