Ryanair airline emphasizes that its aircraft are very safe and that it has been in touch with the family of the man who was nearly sucked out during the flight.
Ryanair assures that its planes are safe after a passenger was saved just before being pulled out through a window during the flight, also stating that they have been in contact with his family.
Earlier this month, a Serbian passenger, Ljubisa Karović, was pulled out headfirst after engine debris shattered a window of a Ryanair plane during a flight from Thessaloniki (Greece) to Memmingen, near Munich (Germany).
The 61-year-old passenger's wife, Svetlana Grković, managed to prevent him from falling out of the plane by holding onto his legs and pulling him back inside with the help of two other passengers.
A passenger reported a loud bang during the flight, after which a window of an emergency exit was shattered.
The passenger closest to the window was injured. "His head and shoulders were sticking out through the shattered window," another eyewitness told the Greek TV station ERT.
Video recordings posted on social media show emergency oxygen masks fallen in the cabin, and eyewitnesses reported passengers screaming in fear.
Following the incident, the aircraft returned to the departure airport shortly after takeoff.
The company stayed in touch with the family
Ryanair emphasizes that its aircraft are safe and has been in touch with the affected passenger.
“Our customer relations team has been in active contact with the family since the incident occurred,” said Neil Sorahan, the group's financial director, according to The Guardian.
“Our crew did an extraordinary job and brought the aircraft back to Thessaloniki. All passengers, without exception, disembarked from the plane on their own feet. The cabin crew and pilots did an excellent job,” the official added.
Sorahan mentioned that it is “far too early” to discuss whether Ryanair will need to provide compensation to the couple, as the airline is awaiting the results of the investigation into the incident.
Last week, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced that it would lead the investigation into the incident, which occurred aboard a Boeing 737 aircraft operated by Malta Air, a subsidiary of Ryanair.
“We welcome the NTSB's involvement. They will conduct a thorough and independent investigation. We are fully cooperating. We have teams on site providing active assistance,” Sorahan said.
These are Ryanair's first statements regarding the incident, apart from a brief statement issued immediately after the event, the British daily reports.
Booking levels have not dropped
Sorahan mentioned that booking volume remains “very high” in anticipation of the peak summer season, despite the escalation of conflict in the Middle East. He added that passengers do not need to worry about the safety of Ryanair's fleet.
Neither the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) nor the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) – which regulate civil aviation in the U.S. and Europe, respectively – have requested Ryanair to make any operational changes, the official stated.
“We are very satisfied with the level of safety across all five of our airlines; they operate to the highest standards of European aviation regulations,” Sorahan said.
“We have a relatively young fleet and we are very satisfied with the safety and maintenance within the Ryanair group. Literally hundreds of millions of flights have been operated with these aircraft (Boeing 737) worldwide since their entry into service.
They are probably the safest aircraft ever built, benefit from rigorous maintenance, and we have very well-trained crews,” stated the group's financial director.
T.D.