A passenger on a Southwest Airlines flight that made an emergency landing after an engine burst apart is suing the company, saying she has been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder sparked by the carriers’ alleged negligence.

Lilia Chavez was sitting three rows behind the window that was shattered by shrapnel from the exploding engine. She says she witnessed the “horror” that followed when the cabin depressurized and pulled fellow passenger Jennifer Riordan part of the way out of the aircraft.

Ms Riordan, a mother of two, later died.

Ms Chavez, a California native, has argued in her federally filed lawsuit that she has been suffering from PTSD, depression and other personal injuries since the fateful flight.

“Ms Chavez witnessed the horror as the force of the depressurization pulled an innocent passenger partially through the shattered window and she watched as passengers risked their lives to pull the passenger back into the aircraft and save her life,” court documents read.

The court documents continue to say that Ms Chavez prayed for her life during the 20 minute ascent into the Philadelphia airport.

Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Jennifer Riordan died after being partially sucked out of a shattered plane window following an engine explosion. Reuters/AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Tammie Jo Shults, hero pilot of Southwest 1380, kept calm and saved her passengers. Kristopher Johnson via Reuters Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Marty Martinez, left, appears with other passengers after a jet engine blew out on the Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 plane. Marty Martinez via AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures The window that was shattered after a jet engine of the Southwest Airlines airplane blew out at altitude Marty Martinez via AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures A National Transportation Safety Board investigator examines damage to the engine. NTSB via AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Jennifer Riordan, a 43-year-old mother-of-two. Facebook/Jennifer Riordan via Reuters Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures The Southwest Airlines jet sits on the runway at Philadelphia International Airport after it was forced to land with an engine failure. AFP/Getty Images Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Pennsylvania Game Commission employees recover a piece of the Southwest Airline engine covering that landed in Penn Township, Berks County. AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Tammie Jo Shults was hailed a hero by passengers. Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures The window that was shattered. Marty Martinez via AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures A National Transportation Safety Board investigator photographs a Southwest Airline engine covering that landed in Penn Township AP Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures The exploded engine of Southwest Airlines flight 1380 during the flight from a passenger's window. Cassie Adams via Reuters Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures US Navy Lieutenant Tammie Jo Shults in front of a Navy F/A-18A in 1992. US Navy/Handout via Reuters Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Damage to the Southwest Airlines plane after Jennifer Riordan died when the jet blew an engine at 32,000ft. PA Southwest Airlines engine explosion: in pictures Emergency personnel monitor the damaged engine. Reuters

She also “contacted her children to tell them that she loved them and that she was preparing to die aboard the crippled aircraft,” according to the court documents.

The lawsuit charged that Southwest Airlines failed to inform passengers about potential defects, and that it had put profits ahead of safety.

“Rather than protect the safety of plaintiff and those who also were fare paying customers, the defendants' misconduct placed profits and business over the safety of its customers and continued to operate these engines,” the court documents read.

Before the incident, Southwest was ranked as the safest airline in the world. Ms Riordan’s death was the first operational fatality of a passenger for the carrier.