Brave Indian pilot saves the day, passengers fly plane to safety: What happened on Flydubai flight

One pilot stabs another as he tries to take control of the flight to crash it. The aircraft loses half its altitude in a minute, panicking passengers. Israel scrambles its fighter jets, fearing a possible hijacking. Passengers and crew of the flight, with the help of the stabbed pilot, overpower the attacker and gain control of the aircraft, which lands safely in Saudi Arabia.

The dramatic sequence of events that unfolded aboard a Tel Aviv-bound FlyDubai flight on Wednesday (September 30), where one pilot heroically fought off another determined to crash the plane, reads like something straight out of an edge-of-the-seat Hollywood flick.

While all the 174 passengers and crew members, including Israeli citizens, are reported safe, the pilot, who tried to crash the plane – believed to be an Omani citizen – has been arrested.

Captain Smit Machchhar, an Indian pilot, who tried to stop his rogue colleague and sustained grievous stab injuries in the process, has been lauded for his valour. World leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump have posted social media messages praising him.

He is stated to be in a stable condition.

While the motive behind the attack is not clear and a probe into the incident is underway, the incident, occurring just days before the anniversary of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel that launched the war in Gaza, has rekindled anxieties about airline security.

Here's what we know and don't know about what happened on FlyDubai flight FZ1073:

Sequence of events: A fight, an alert, a rapid descent

Reports say that the flight FZ1073, travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv in Israel with 174 passengers, including 27 children, transmitted emergency signals before a sharp descent. A distress call had come at 8:44 am local time, about two and a half hours after takeoff.

Describing what went on inside the aircraft, Netanyahu told the press that the captain and first officer had been fighting in the cockpit after one tried to stab the other and crash the aircraft.

The aircraft swiftly lost altitude — dropping from 33,000 feet to 17,000 feet (around 10,000 metres to 5,100 metres) — in the span of about a minute. It then circled close to the Jordanian border before landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, about an hour later. Most of the plane's rudder was ripped off the tail during the sudden drop.

Passengers who experienced an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia, during a flight on FlyDubai plane, arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday. Photo: AP

Passengers break into cockpit, overpower pilot

Israeli authorities feared a possible hijacking and scrambled Israeli Air Force fighter jets. Several defence officials insisted on sending an Israeli rescue aircraft to bring the passengers to Israel. However, Saudi authorities denied permission for an Israeli rescue aircraft, The Jerusalem Post said.

A passenger and a crew member managed to break into the cockpit, enabling other crew members to enter and overpower the pilot who had carried out the stabbing while attempting to sabotage the aircraft’s systems and fly the plane to a safe landing, according to Netanyahu, who cited a passenger he had spoken to at Ben Gurion International Airport.

Also Read: Flydubai incident: Netanyahu praises stabbed pilot for ‘extraordinary bravery’

Netanyahu said that the passenger told him that the bloodied captain managed to open the cockpit door before collapsing. Then the other passengers entered and took over the hijacker before he could crash the plane.

In videos circulated on social media, Machchhar can be seen drenched in blood, wearing an oxygen mask and lying on his back in the galley of the aircraft.

A passenger identified as Yanvi Hayoun told Netanyahu how the others barged into the cockpit, rescued the Captain before stabilising the aircraft by pulling back its handles – a skill gained from TV series Air Crash Investigation.

According to Netanyahu, another crew member then entered the cockpit and helped stabilise the aircraft.

"I salute these heroes who demonstrated extraordinary resourcefulness and courage. They saved many lives and prevented a major disaster,” he said.

The aircraft landed safely at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia, and all passengers were out of danger, said Netanyahu, who met his security chiefs to discuss the situation.

Hours later, the passengers returned to Tel Aviv on a Flydubai rescue flight.

Probe underway, motive unknown

Flydubai confirmed that the aircraft had experienced an in-flight "altercation" and landed safely in Tabuk.

The airline said it was cooperating with the relevant authorities and that all passengers were safe.

"At this early stage, the underlying reasons and motives behind this event are unknown and remain subject to a formal investigation. We urge all parties to refrain from premature speculation while authorities gather the facts,” the airline said in a statement.

Tabuk airport authorities said the captain and first officer sustained injuries and were immediately transferred to a hospital for medical care. They added that passengers were provided with the necessary assistance at the terminal.

Unanswered cockpit, knife questions

Despite the heroic act by the pilot, crew and the passengers, some questions have remained unanswered.

The cockpit door on all aircraft is locked during flight for security reasons — a measure that became the industry standard after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, in which hijackers broke into the cockpits of four domestic flights in the United States.

It's unclear how the passenger and crew managed to get into the Flydubai cockpit since aircraft doors are reinforced to withstand attempts to break them down.

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Another question is how anyone on the aircraft — even a pilot — was able to get a knife onboard. It's unclear how big the knife was that was used in the attack.

Pilots undergo rigorous screening, including passing through metal detectors, at checkpoints at all airports. It's also standard for airlines to vet their pilots' background for criminal and employment history, their physical and mental health, as well as having them undergo intelligence and security screening.

Israel has some of the most stringent airline security measures worldwide. Passengers on Israel-bound flights are regularly taken aside for questioning and baggage searches after passing through normal airport security. It's uncertain whether the pilots of the Flydubai flight had been screened as vigorously.

There have been extremely rare occasions when airline security protocols fail. In 2015, the co-pilot of Germanwings Flight 9525 locked the captain out of the cockpit and deliberately set the plane on a collision course with a mountainside, killing all 150 people aboard.

Praise for Captain Machchhar

Hailing Machchhar as a "true hero", Netanyahu on Wednesday said that "despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker — preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster."

"He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and other nationals. I wish Captain Machchhar a speedy and full recovery. He is a true hero," the Israeli prime minister said.

"My salute to the Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar for his extraordinary bravery," he said.

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The Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia said Machchhar is admitted to a hospital in Tabuk city in northwest Saudi Arabia and is receiving necessary medical attention. “A full update on his health is awaited, but he is reported to be in stable condition," it added.

"We hope that he recovers from his injuries at the earliest. We are in touch with his family and assure them that we will continue to follow up on his health with Saudi authorities and extend all possible assistance for his wellbeing," it added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also hailed Machchhar as a "hero" in a post on X on Thursday. Lauding Machchhar, Modi said he helped save hundreds of lives and prevented a "great tragedy" despite being seriously injured.

"Captain Smit Machchhar is a HERO. In the face of the gravest danger and despite being seriously injured, he showed immense courage and an unwavering resolve to protect the lives of others. His valour helped save hundreds of lives and avert a great tragedy," Modi said.

A jihadist attack?

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the incident aboard the plane “was a jihadist terrorist attack attempt, which was thwarted only thanks to the bravery of several Israeli passengers who broke into the cockpit and overpowered the terrorist".

Video clips circulated by Israeli media show passengers aboard the aircraft moving towards the front of the plane, while others can be heard shouting and asking what was happening.

In a video circulated on Israeli social media, a man, who has blood on his face, is filming himself while saying, "We're here – the plane – we’ve just taken control of the terrorists. We’re about to land. Anyone who hears me: we need help. We’re landing in Tabuk."

Passengers recount ordeal

Zvika Manes, a passenger who said he helped subdue the alleged attacker, told Israeli financial newspaper Calcalist that his wife heard shouting and screams near the cockpit before he and others intervened. “I’m covered in blood. It was insane,” he said, according to Ynet.

Passengers embark on a Flydubai aircraft at Ben Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, Israel. Photo: AP

Another passenger, Dalia Shpigel, told Israeli newspaper Haaretz that there were “terrible screams throughout the plane” before “three to five guys burst into the cockpit” and subdued the attacker.

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Daniel, an Israeli passenger, said two off-duty pilots who were on the plane took control of the flight after the attacker was overpowered.

“The spinning stopped. It took some — I don’t know, it felt like an eternity, but I think it was two minutes, at least two or three minutes, during which the plane was simply diving and spinning like crazy,” Daniel was quoted as saying by The Times of Israel.

“It felt like, that’s it. It’s over. September 11 is happening again.”

Noa Shpigel, a journalist with the Haaretz newspaper, told the BBC that her 74-year-old mother was travelling on the Flydubai flight from Kathmandu via Dubai to Israel.

After learning about the incident, Shpigel spoke to her mother, who said passengers realised something was wrong when the aircraft began “to jump in the air” and then “dive down”.

She said they quickly understood that something was very wrong in the cockpit. Several young Israeli men sitting at the front of the aircraft then entered the cockpit and took control, Shpigel told the BBC.

Israeli Opposition leader Yair Lapid said a warning about increased terrorist activity abroad, which he was briefed about before the FlyBubai incident, had nothing to do with the events aboard the aircraft.

(With inputs from agencies)