'A true hero': Netanyahu 'salutes' Indian pilot who stopped co-pilot from crashing plane

New Delhi saw a tense incident aboard Flydubai Flight FZ1073, as an Indian captain intervened to stop his co-pilot from potentially crashing the plane. The Indian pilot, Captain Smit Machchhar, was reportedly stabbed and injured during the cockpit altercation with his Omani co-pilot, according to Israeli media reports and an Israeli journalist.

The incident unfolded during the flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the Boeing 737 sent emergency signals and experienced a rapid descent from around 34,000 feet to about 20,000 feet. Israeli officials initially treated the situation as a possible hijacking, prompting Israeli fighter jets to scramble. However, they later clarified that it was not a hijacking but were assessing it as a potential attempted terror attack.

Captain Machchhar, with over 13 years of commercial flying experience, including more than 9,500 hours on Boeing 737 aircraft, had been a captain with Flydubai since June 2022. The incident occurred after a physical altercation believed to have been between the two pilots. Passengers reported hearing screaming and seeing blood inside the cockpit during the harrowing ordeal, which ended with the aircraft making an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

All 180 Israeli passengers on board were reported safe. Flydubai has confirmed the incident and is cooperating with authorities in their investigation.