Passengers overcame co-pilot who tried to crash flydubai flight, Netanyahu says
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: The co-pilot of a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv tried to crash the plane after stabbing the pilot, but passengers then held him down while other pilots landed the plane safely in Saudi Arabia, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday. Describing the event as “a highly severe security incident,” Netanyahu said Saudi authorities would interrogate the co-pilot…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reported on Wednesday that the co-pilot of a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv attempted to crash the plane after stabbing the pilot. However, passengers overpowered the co-pilot and other pilots managed to land the plane safely in Saudi Arabia, Netanyahu stated. The incident is described by Netanyahu as a "highly severe security incident."
An Omani national, identified as the alleged assailant by an Israeli official, was arrested upon landing. Netanyahu, speaking in a video statement released by his office, confirmed that all passengers were unharmed. A passenger reportedly mentioned that along with a crew member, they broke into the cockpit when the aircraft "entered a tailspin and began to dive."
They found the co-pilot "trying to sabotage the plane's systems." Netanyahu emphasized that the passengers had "saved many lives" by preventing a major disaster. An Israeli official had earlier informed Reuters that the plane transmitted emergency signals, and data from flight-tracking website Flightradar24 indicated a sudden and rapid descent of nearly 14,000 feet in under 30 seconds, followed by an emergency signal.
The Israeli officials, speaking anonymously, assessed the incident as an "attempted terror attack" rather than a hijacking or related to mental health issues.
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