A Flydubai pilot attacked his co-pilot with a knife during a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv

On Wednesday, September 30, a serious incident occurred on board a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv. “One of the pilots stabbed the co-pilot and apparently tried to crash the plane with passengers on board,” confirmed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli authorities currently have no indication that the attacker acted on the orders of Iran or another organized group, Channel 12 reported. Initial findings indicate that he acted alone. However, Flydubai stressed that the causes of the incident remain unknown and called for refraining from "premature speculation" until the investigation is completed.

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said the injured captain, Indian citizen Smit Machchhar, lay bleeding on the cockpit floor but managed to activate the door opening mechanism. Passengers who got inside saw the co-pilot hitting the control panel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked the captain for his actions.

Despite the knife wounds and serious condition, he fought, resisted, opened the cockpit door and enabled the passengers and crew to incapacitate the attacker, preventing a catastrophe in the air - he wrote on the X platform. He called Machchhar a "true hero".

Netanyahu met with passengers at Ben Gurion Airport, including: with Yaniv Hayun, who was one of three Israelis who forced their way into the cockpit.

I look at you and I see a lion, a great hero - the Prime Minister praised him.

Hajun told Channel 12 that he knew how to react from watching a program about plane crashes. As the plane began a sharp dive, he noticed that no one was controlling the controls and remembered that he had to pull them towards himself to point the plane up.

Saudi authorities detained and interrogated the co-pilot

An Israeli official said he was an Omani citizen. The country's authorities did not comment on the case. Israeli Channel 16 reported, citing another Flydubai pilot, that the suspect had been working for the airline for eight months. The station's interlocutor described him as a religious extremist, claiming that he often prayed and refused to shake hands with women. Flydubai has not confirmed this information.

Israeli Embassy in Poland: Attempted terrorist attack

The Israeli Embassy in Poland assessed in a press release based on "currently available preliminary information" that the event was "an attempt to carry out a large-scale jihadist terrorist attack, potentially comparable in scale to the September 11 attacks in New York." According to the embassy, ​​the choice of an Emirati plane with Israeli passengers may also indicate an attempt to harm Israel's good relations with the United Arab Emirates.

Israel announced tighter controls on pilots flying both Israeli and foreign carriers into the country.

Pilots working in the Middle East told Reuters that crew members undergo security checks similar to passengers and should not be allowed to bring weapons on board. It has not yet been established what the captain was attacked with.

Passengers reported seeing a man with a knife, one of the pilots indicated that the crew may have access to, among others, for metal knives from the on-board service or an emergency ax located in the cockpit.