One pilot 'stabbed the other' and 'apparently tried to crash' Israel-bound plane, Netanyahu says
- On Wednesday, September 30, 2026, Flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, after a violent cockpit incident involving a stabbing and sudden altitude loss.
- Israeli officials allege an Omani co-pilot stabbed Captain Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, and attempted to crash the aircraft, though Flydubai describes the event as an 'altercation' between pilots.
- Flightradar24 data shows the Boeing 737 MAX 8 dropped from 33,000 feet to 17,000 feet while transmitting emergency codes 7700 and 7500, before passengers and crew intervened to neutralize the attacker.
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reported that Saudi authorities arrested the co-pilot, while injured pilots were hospitalized and Israeli warplanes briefly scrambled over hijacking fears.
- Authorities are increasing security scrutiny for Israel-bound flights, while pragmatic aviation cooperation between Israel and Saudi Arabia—which lack formal diplomatic ties—enabled the emergency landing.
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746 Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
Pilot stabbed on Israel-bound flight
A pilot has been arrested after stabbing another pilot and apparently trying to crash a plane bound for Israel.
The second pilot of the flydubai Dubai-Tel Aviv flight injured the commander and tried to cause a plane crash, Israel said. The passengers neutralized it, and the plane was landed by a reserve pair of pilots
Off-Duty Pilots Foil Alleged Plot to Crash Flydubai Flight, Saving 170 Israelis
Passengers and crew members subdued a flydubai co-pilot after he allegedly attacked and stabbed the captain during a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, prompting an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia, Israeli officials said Wednesday. Flydubai flight FZ1073, carrying more than 170 passengers, including a large number of Israelis, was diverted to Tabuk after a […]
Omani Co-Pilot Tries to Crash Israel-Bound Flight After Stabbing Captain in Alleged Jihadist Terror Attack › American Greatness
A commercial jet traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv narrowly averted disaster Wednesday after the Omani co-pilot stabbed the captain with a pocket knife and […] Source
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