A man was nearly sucked head-first out of a cabin window on a Ryanair flight Friday, in what can only be described as a very aggressive form of fresh air. The plane, operated by Ryanair's subsidiary Malta Air, was about 10 minutes into its journey from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany, when it abruptly descended 9,000 feet (2,700 meters) after passengers reported hearing "some kind of explosion."

A 61-year-old Serbian national is now being treated at a Greek hospital for friction burns, presumably from his impromptu attempt at becoming a human windsock. According to Michalis Giannakos, president of the Panhellenic Federation of Public Hospital Employees, "His wife held onto his legs for around five minutes to stop him from being sucked out." Because nothing says romance like clinging to your spouse's ankles at 30,000 feet.

Ryanair, in a statement that can only be described as aggressively casual, confirmed that its flight "returned shortly after take-off when a passenger window dislodged in flight." The aircraft landed normally, and passengers returned to the terminal, where one passenger "requested and received medical assistance." A replacement aircraft was eventually arranged, because nothing soothes rattled nerves like waiting hours for a different plane from the same airline.

Passengers told local media the man was left hanging head-first out of the window as far as his shoulders before fellow passengers managed to pull him back inside. Some claimed the window was smashed by pieces of the jet's engine, though Ryanair has not commented on this - perhaps because they were busy calculating how much they could charge for the replacement window.

A passenger named Christina told Radio Thessaloniki: "We immediately realised there had been a decompression. There were screams... for a moment I thought someone had accidentally opened the emergency door." Another passenger, Sofia, added: "When the oxygen masks dropped, we had no idea what was going to happen. We didn't know whether we would make it back." The injured man reportedly lost consciousness several times due to lack of oxygen and shock, which is generally considered suboptimal for in-flight entertainment.

The aircraft, believed to be 18 years old, is now under investigation by the Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority, with Fraport Greece and the Irish Aviation Authority offering assistance. Retired airline pilot Chris Brady noted that the incident "could have been worse" had the seat belt not been fastened - a reminder that the captain's advice to keep your belt on even when the sign is off isn't just to ruin your nap.

In a related bit of grim trivia, a passenger died in 2018 when debris from a damaged engine caused a window to break on a Southwest Airlines flight, and she was partially sucked out. So, for Ryanair, at least this one ended with the passenger still inside the plane, which is technically a win.