He Was Sucked Out of an Airplane Window—and Says He Thanks Hashem Every Day

Ljubisa Karovic, a 61-year-old Serbian entrepreneur, miraculously survived an event that is almost impossible to survive. It happened during a routine Ryanair flight from Greece to Germany, when a window near his seat shattered. Within seconds, Karovic was sucked outside the plane at a speed of more than 600 kilometers per hour and at an altitude of about 15,000 feet.

Karovic, believed to be the only known person to survive after being sucked out of an airplane window at high altitude, lost consciousness during the incident, was seriously injured, and suffers from burns and injuries to his right arm, armpit, and chest. His Greek lawyer, Vassilis Tsiaras, described his survival as a miracle and said that his client "skipped in and out of death."

In his first interview with "The Guardian," Karovic said he does not remember much from the incident: "I am lucky… I don’t remember much, and my head and neck still hurt, but I am still alive. It could be the seat belt, the fact that I was still strapped in. But maybe it is fate. I believe in Hashem and thank Him every day."

Karovic’s wife, Svetlana, who was seated three rows behind him, said that for about a minute and a half to two minutes, she saw her husband "half inside and half outside," while his face swelled because of the pressure differences and the rushing air.

Svetlana also said that an unidentified Albanian passenger was the first to rush to her husband’s aid, managed to pull him back into the cabin, and tried to seal the window. At first he used a bag that had been sucked out, and afterward a suitcase that managed to block the airflow.

Ryanair said the crew acted according to procedure, moved the passenger to another seat next to his wife after the plane descended, arranged for a doctor who was on the flight, and coordinated a medical team that was waiting upon landing in Thessaloniki.