‘My husband was sucked out of Ryanair plane window – I clung to his legs at 20,000ft’
Ljubiša Karovi, 61, was travelling with his wife Svetlana Grkovi on a Ryanair flight on Friday, July 10, when a Ryanair window incident left him hospitalised after take-off from Thessaloniki
Svetlana Grkovi saved the life of her husband Ljubisa as she clung to his legs(Image: FB)
The wife of a man who was partly drawn out of a Ryanair aircraft window at 20,000ft has recounted her frantic efforts to rescue him during the horrifying mid-air emergency as she thought “If we die, we die together”.
Ljubiša Karovi, from Serbia, was traveling with his wife Svetlana Grkovi on a Ryanair flight on Friday, July 10, when catastrophe occurred. The pair were heading home from a summer break in Greece when the aircraft encountered difficulties shortly after departure from Thessaloniki at 5.55am local time.
The captain spotted a problem with the engine while the plane was above North Macedonia and chose to return towards Thessaloniki.
During the descent, a section of the engine reportedly detached with claims it smashed into a cabin window beside where Mr Karovi was seated, reports the Express. Ryanair confirmed the incident and said the “window dislodged inflight”.
The damage to the ‘dislodged window’ (Image: -)
The collision caused the 61-year-old to be partly dragged from with aircraft with reports his head and shoudler wer outside due to the cabin pressure. His wife said she instantly seized hold of his legs as he was left partly dangling outside the aircraft.
Speaking to Nova, Ms Grkovi said: “It was as if a part of the engine broke off and hit the window next to which my husband Ljubiša was sitting.
“I reacted immediately and grabbed his legs. I thought: ‘If we die, we die together.’ It was horrible.”
Ms Grkovi said she wished to personally acknowledge another passenger who assisted in saving her husband’s life during the nightmare.
Mr Karovi continues to receive hospital treatment following the incident and is thought to be unable to communicate due to his injuries. His wife revealed he sustained friction burns, a severely damaged hand and several other burns, while also being left in a condition of profound shock.
Ryanair issued a statement regarding the incident (stock)(Image: ASphotowed via Getty Images)
She explained he blacked out multiple times throughout the ordeal and retains minimal recollection of the events.
A Ryanair spokesperson stated: “A Ryanair flight from Thessaloniki to Memmingen on Friday morning (10 July) returned to Thessaloniki shortly after take-off when a passenger window dislodged inflight.
“The aircraft landed normally and passengers returned to the terminal. One passenger requested and received medical assistance on the ground in Thessaloniki.
“In order to minimise any delay, a replacement aircraft was arranged to bring passengers to Memmingen which departed Thessaloniki at 9:53 local this morning.”
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