Pilot Stabs Captain during Airline Highjacking Attempt on Flight bound for Israel
Flydubai Flight FZ1073 Stabbing: Co-Pilot Allegedly Tried to Crash Tel Aviv-Bound Plane | Emergency Landing in Saudi Arabia
Plane Highjacking Attempt aboard Flydubai Jet Headed for Israel
TABUK, Saudi Arabia — A Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in northwestern Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after the co-pilot allegedly stabbed the captain and attempted to seize control of the aircraft and crash it, Israeli officials said. Passengers and crew overpowered the attacker as the Boeing 737 MAX 8 plunged thousands of feet in seconds.
Flydubai Flight FZ1073 departed Dubai International Airport shortly after 3 a.m. GMT carrying about 174 people, the vast majority Israeli, including children. About two and a half hours into the flight, near the Jordanian border, the aircraft suddenly lost between 14,000 and 17,000 feet of altitude in less than two minutes, according to flight-tracking data. It transmitted a general emergency code (squawk 7700) followed by a hijacking code (squawk 7500). Israel scrambled fighter jets as a precaution.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the co-pilot stabbed Capt. Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, and “apparently tried to crash the plane.” Despite being seriously wounded and covered in blood on the cockpit floor, Machchhar fought back and opened the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to intervene. Netanyahu praised the captain as a “true hero” of “extraordinary bravery” who prevented “a catastrophic mid-air disaster.” Machchhar was later reported in stable condition.
Passengers described chaos: screaming, a plane that “went into a spin and began to descend,” and a man with a knife in the cockpit. Several Israelis rushed forward. One passenger, Yaniv Hayun, said he entered the cockpit, saw the attacker at the controls attempting to sabotage the systems, put him in a chokehold, and pulled him out. Off-duty Flydubai pilots traveling as passengers then helped stabilize and land the jet. Both the captain and co-pilot were taken to hospital. No passengers were reported seriously injured.
The aircraft landed safely at Tabuk’s Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport. After several hours on the ground, most passengers continued to Tel Aviv on a replacement Flydubai flight and were greeted by crowds. The suspected attacker, identified by Israeli officials as an Omani national who had worked for the airline less than a year, was detained and is being questioned by Saudi authorities.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called the episode an “attempted jihadist terror attack.” UAE authorities described it as a “security incident” under investigation. Flydubai confirmed all passengers were safe, said it was cooperating with authorities, and temporarily suspended all flights to and from Israel pending the inquiry. Saudi and Emirati officials have not publicly confirmed the Israeli account of an attempted crash. Motive remains officially unestablished.
Flydubai Flight FZ1073 Stabbing: Co-Pilot Allegedly Tried to Crash Tel Aviv-Bound Plane | Emergency Landing in Saudi Arabia
Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv diverted to Tabuk after co-pilot stabbed Indian captain Smit Machchhar and allegedly tried to crash the jet. Passengers subdued attacker; all 174 safe. Full details and official statements.
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