Flydubai captain spoke about the attack of the co-pilot during the flight
Quick Look
The captain of a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv said that the co-pilot hit him in the back of the head after praying, tried to open the cockpit door so that passengers could take control, and the plane made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia; Israeli authorities called the incident an attempted terrorist attack.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
A Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv suddenly issued a distress signal and made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia after a dispute between the pilots.
Brief retelling from RIA II
The co-pilot of the Flydubai flight went to pray before the attack while the captain looked ahead out of respect, and was struck on the back of the head minutes later.
The captain of the plane tried to stop the attacking pilot, open the cockpit door so that passengers could rush inside and take control of the plane.
MOSCOW, October 4 – RIA Novosti. The co-pilot of the Flydubai flight went to pray for a few minutes before the attack, the captain of the plane, Smith Machchhar, spoke about this in a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as quoted by the Ynet portal.
"It was a normal flight. The co-pilot wanted to pray. This is not unusual, many locals pray. While he was praying, I looked forward and not behind, out of respect, and four or five minutes later I received a strong blow to the back of my head," he said.
According to Machchhar, his first thought was that the plane had been catastrophically damaged, but as the impacts followed one after another, he realized that it was not the plane that was at fault, but his colleague.
“I tried to stop it, but after the first impacts I saw practically nothing. Everything was completely blurry. And at that moment I had the feeling that the plane was diving sharply down,” explained the captain of the plane.
According to the captain of the flight, he tried to open the cabin door, feeling that he might die if he did not do this, after which he pushed the door with all his might so that the passengers rushed inside the cabin and took control of the plane into their own hands.
On Wednesday, a FlyDubai plane flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv signaled an emergency and some time later made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. The airline later confirmed that a fight broke out between the pilots during the flight.
Later, information appeared in the media that one of the pilots had wounded the other with a knife and wanted to cause a plane crash. This information was confirmed to RIA Novosti by passengers on that flight. Israeli authorities called the incident an attempted terrorist attack.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
There will be a formal investigation into the incident by the airlines and the UAE and Israeli authorities.
Very likely · Within weeks
Flydubai may strengthen safety and psychological screening protocols for pilots.
Likely · Within months
Open Questions
- What were the co-pilot's motives?
- Was a knife used during the attack?
- What measures will be taken to prevent such incidents?
