Southwest Airlines flight horror: Mother-of-two Jennifer Riordan killed as she is almost sucked out of plane window when engine explodes

A woman killed after she was almost sucked out of a Southwest Airlines flight window following an explosion mid-air has been named.

Finance worker Jennifer Riordan, 41, had been on a business trip for Wells Fargo bank before she died in the horrific scenes on the New York to Dallas flight.

The mother-of-two was reportedly hit by shrapnel after the Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 blew an engine at 32,000ft on Tuesday.

Parts of the engine smashed the window next to Mrs Riordan and she was almost completely sucked out of the plane before fellow passengers fought to drag her back inside.

Jennifer Riordan, right, was killed in the horrifying incident
Facebook

Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel said passengers on the flight had done "some pretty amazing things under some pretty difficult circumstances".

But Mrs Riordan had been seriously injured and died later. Seven other people were injured.

The plane was forced to make an emergency landing at Philadelphia International Airport.

Passengers put on oxygen masks and braced for impact amid the terrifying scenes.

The female pilot, who it was revealed is an ex-Navy pilot, was praised for showing "nerves of steel" during the ordeal.

The engine on the Boeing 737 as it sits on the runway
AP

Footage shared online showed terrified passengers putting on oxygen masks as the Boeing 737 landed on Tuesday at around 11.20am (local time).

One man who live-streamed the landing on Facebook said a window exploded mid-air.

Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel said seven people were treated for minor injuries after the landing.

He said there was a fuel leak in one of the engines when firefighters arrived and a small fire was quickly brought under control.

A passenger's father told NBC Philadelphia that a female passenger was partially sucked out of the plane when the window broke.

“One passenger, a woman, was partially … was drawn out towards the out of the plane … was pulled back in by other passengers," he said in a phone interview with the network.

The Federal Aviation Administration said that the plane landed after the crew reported damage to one of the engines, along with the fuselage and at least one window.

After the plane landed, Marty Martinez posted photos of a damaged window near to the engine.

The Southwest Airlines plane sits on the runway at the Philadelphia International Airport after it made an emergency landing in Philadelphia
AP

He wrote: "Engine exploded in the air and blew open window three seats away from me."

Mr Martinez later told local media he thought he was recording his "last moments".

One of the engine's fan blades was separated and missing, according to investigators.

The blade reportedly was separated at the point where it would come into the hub and there was evidence of "metal fatigue".

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