Flydubai pilot from India was stabbed during conflict on board the plane

New information has emerged about the nationality of the pilot injured by his partner on the Flydubai plane. As reported in Israel, the injured captain of the Dubai-Tel Aviv flight is an Indian citizen named Smith Machchahar.

According to the source, the man has been working for the airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 2022. Before that, he worked for the Indian airline SpiceJet for 11 years as a pilot training instructor. His expertise is in supervising junior aircrew members and overseeing operational training.

As the publication says, the captain heroically resisted and warned the crew and passengers, thanks to which the plane was successfully landed by the off-duty pilots on board. After the plane landed, the man was taken to the hospital. Information about his further condition in the sources differs: the publication Walla wrote that it was not possible to save the commander’s life. However, according to Mash, he is alive and is on a ventilator.

The news portal Firstpost also wrote about the Indian pilot, “who fought off his colleague and saved 180 passengers.” The media also quotes Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon. “Thank you to the heroic UAE pilot who fought like a lion and protected the lives of the passengers,” he wrote.

It was initially reported that the attacker was an Omani citizen, and the victim was from the United Arab Emirates.

A video of a bloodied Flydubai pilot has emerged

Gritty footage of a pilot stabbed on board a Boeing 737 has been posted online.

In the video, you can see a man in bloody clothes lying on the floor of the salon. This is believed to be the pilot who was stabbed during an on-board dispute. Nearby, passengers hold the neutralized attacker.

“We are now protecting the pilot... We were attacked right on this plane! (...) We took control of the situation,” eyewitnesses say in the recording.

Who could actually land the plane?

The accident occurred on the morning of September 30. There were about 180 passengers on board. During the flight, the aircraft descended sharply and transmitted a distress signal 7700, followed by a code 7500, used when an aircraft is suspected of being hijacked. According to preliminary data, the conflict occurred between two pilots. One of them tried to direct the plane down to the ground, the second, together with the passengers, tried to stop it. As a result, the latter was stabbed. First aid was provided to him by the people on board. A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “the wounded pilot, covered in blood and lying on the floor, clicked the lock on the cockpit door,” Reuters reports.

After the incident, the plane landed safely at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia. The pilot who tried to cause a plane crash was arrested. The head of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, Israel Katz, called what happened on the flight an attempted jihadist terrorist attack.

According to sources, the aircraft was landed by two airline pilots who were flying on board as passengers. According to one version, we are talking about a Russian and a Ukrainian, who were replacements for the main crew members.

According to RIA Novosti, journalist of the Israeli TV channel i24News Guy Azriel claims that those who took control of the Flydubai board and landed it safely are citizens of South Africa and New Zealand.