Key facts
- A flydubai co-pilot attacked the pilot with a sharp weapon on a flight to Tel Aviv.
- The plane dived 16,000 feet before passengers and off-duty pilots regained control.
- The aircraft landed in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, with the pilot recovering from injuries.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alleged the co-pilot was motivated by Islamist radicalization.
- The UAE has launched an investigation into the incident.
A flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday after the co-pilot allegedly attacked the pilot with a sharp weapon, causing the aircraft to dive significantly. Passengers and off-duty pilots intervened to regain control of the Boeing 737, which was carrying 182 passengers.
The incident occurred around 9:30 a.m. local time when passenger Tali Manes heard heavy blows against the cockpit door and alerted a flight attendant. She then witnessed the co-pilot open the door to attack the pilot, Smit Machchhar, who was bleeding and struggling. The plane subsequently lost 16,000 feet of altitude in about a minute.
Passengers rushed to the cockpit, overpowered the co-pilot, and with the help of two off-duty pilots, managed to stabilize the aircraft. Machchhar, who is recovering in an Abu Dhabi hospital, managed to send an alarm to air traffic control and unlock the cockpit door before losing strength. He told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he had been "fighting for my life" and realized that "if I didn’t get up… then passengers would lose their lives."
The co-pilot, described as an Omani national who had been with flydubai for five to nine months, is currently unidentified. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserted that the co-pilot was a terrorist motivated by Islamist radical indoctrination, aiming to hijack or crash the plane and kill Jews. He cited social media evidence and the attacker's alleged suicidal calls.
Terrorism experts, however, expressed skepticism about the suicide-only motive, suggesting a link to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Colin Clarke, a terrorism expert at the Soufan Center, noted the low probability of a pilot choosing to commit suicide on a flight full of Israelis and suggested potential radicalization influenced by the conflict. He pointed to al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) as a possible group involved in such attacks.
The incident has raised significant questions about aviation security, including the screening of pilots for psychiatric illness and extremist views, and the controversial practice of locking cockpit doors from the inside since 9/11. Philip Baum, a visiting professor of aviation security, emphasized the need for more rigorous pilot screening. The UAE attorney general, Hamad Saif al-Shamsi, announced an investigation to determine the incident's truth, circumstances, motives, and any connection to terrorism.