DUBAI/TABUK, Saudi Arabia — A Flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after one pilot stabbed the other midflight and apparently tried to crash the plane, according to Israeli officials.
Flight FZ 1073, a Boeing 737 carrying about 130 people — most of them Israeli citizens — departed Dubai around 7:00 a.m. local time. About two hours into the flight, a violent struggle broke out in the cockpit, according to flight tracking data and passenger accounts.
Flightradar24 recorded what it called "extreme fluctuations" in the jet's altitude. The plane plunged more than 17,000 feet in under two minutes and changed its emergency transponder code to "7500" — the international signal for unlawful interference or hijacking.
What happened in the cockpit
According to Israeli officials and passenger accounts, the co-pilot stabbed Captain Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, and tried to take the plane down.
Despite being stabbed and seriously wounded, the captain managed to unlock the secured cockpit door and alert the passengers, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Passengers and crew then rushed the cockpit and overpowered the attacker.
"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," Netanyahu wrote on X, calling Machchhar a "true hero" of "extraordinary bravery."
One passenger told Israeli television the cabin suddenly went dark — "a sudden shutdown, a loss of the plane's electrical system, the multimedia system, everything" — followed by screams of "stabbings, stabbings, blood, blood."
A dentist on board, Dr. Shota Musev, said he treated the wounded pilot mid-air for severe head wounds and cuts to his fingers. A second set of pilots who happened to be on board — one of them believed to be British, according to a passenger — helped land the aircraft.
The plane touched down safely at Tabuk airport in northeastern Saudi Arabia around 8:45 a.m. A photo from the tarmac showed damage to the jet's rudder, likely caused by the rapid descent.
The response
Netanyahu said: "During the flight, as they were approaching our country, one of the pilots stabbed the other pilot and apparently tried to crash the plane with everyone on board."
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called it "an attempted jihadist terrorist attack." National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir also raised the possibility of a terrorist motive. Saudi authorities arrested the suspected attacker, who has been identified as an Omani national, though his name has not been released.
Flydubai confirmed only that an "altercation occurred in the flight deck" of flight FZ 1073, saying the flight crew secured the aircraft and diverted to Tabuk. The airline said the motives behind the incident were unknown and remain subject to a formal investigation. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed the arrest.
The wounded captain is being treated at a hospital in Tabuk. The Indian embassy in Riyadh said he was receiving "necessary medical attention" and was in stable condition.
Israeli airspace was temporarily closed following the incident, and Netanyahu met with defense officials. Flydubai said it sent aircraft to bring the passengers from Saudi Arabia to Tel Aviv.
The ordeal comes just days before a closely watched Israeli election, and authorities in Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are working to determine exactly what happened aboard the flight.
This is a developing story. NCN will update it as officials release more information.
- National Correspondent Network
