Malta B738 at Thessaloniki on Jul 10th 2026, engine damage, cabin window shattered, passenger partly sucked out

Last Update: July 31, 2026 / 16:50:35 GMT/Zulu time

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Incident Facts

Date of incident
Jul 10, 2026

Classification
Accident

Airline
Malta Air

Flight number
FR-1879

Departure
Thessaloniki, Greece

Destination
Memmingen, Germany

Aircraft Registration
9H-QEU

Aircraft Type
Boeing 737-800

ICAO Type Designator
B738

A Malta Air Boeing 737-800 on behalf of Ryanair, registration 9H-QEU performing flight FR-1879 from Thessaloniki (Greece) to Memmingen (Germany), was climbing through FL150 out of Thessaloniki's runway 28 when the crew reported some right hand engine (CFM56) issue, a cabin window shattered, the passenger sitting adjacent to the window became stuck in the window opening with the head out of the window. The oxygen masks were released. The passenger was pulled inside. The aircraft descended to below FL100 and returned to Thessaloniki, burned off fuel and landed safely back on Thessaloniki's runway 10 about 75 minutes after departure. The most affected passenger was taken to a hospital with serious injuries.

The Republic of North Macedonia opened an investigation into the occurrence. The NTSB appointed an accredited representative to assist the investigation.

On Jul 16th 2026 the NTSB announced: "Following further analysis of the Ryanair Boeing 737 flight track, investigators determined that the accident occurred in Greek airspace. Under the provisions of ICAO Annex 13, which allow the country in which the accident occurs to delegate an investigation, the Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority elected to delegate the investigation to the NTSB. The NTSB accepted the delegation and is leading the investigation, with Greece participating as the Accredited Representative."

The aircraft is still on the ground in Thessaloniki on Jul 31st 2026.

On Jul 31st 2026 the NTSB stated, that there had been one serious injury. The occurrence was rated an accident.
Incident Facts

Date of incident
Jul 10, 2026

Classification
Accident

Airline
Malta Air

Flight number
FR-1879

Departure
Thessaloniki, Greece

Destination
Memmingen, Germany

Aircraft Registration
9H-QEU

Aircraft Type
Boeing 737-800

ICAO Type Designator
B738

This article is published under license from Avherald.com. © of text by Avherald.com.
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