Indian pilot tells PM Modi he opened flydubai cockpit door during attack

Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar was attacked by his co-pilot during a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv. The co-pilot, who was reportedly an Omani national, stabbed Captain Machchhar and attempted to crash the plane. Despite his injuries, Captain Machchhar managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew members to intervene and overpower the attacker.

According to Captain Machchhar's account, he was lying on the floor injured and being attacked when he realized the plane was sinking and he had to act. He said he made a "last push" to open the door from inside, and others came in to help control the situation. The plane had plunged over 17,000 feet before passengers and crew retook control and made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

Captain Machchhar has been praised for his bravery by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Modi said Captain Machchhar's actions helped avert a tragedy on the scale of the 9/11 attacks, and that 140 crore Indians salute the captain and pray for his well-being. Captain Machchhar is currently recovering in a hospital in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and is reported to be in stable condition.

Brief written by urgent.news from Al-Monitor, NDTV, BBC World, The Hindu, Jerusalem Post — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.