Flydubai co-pilot attacked captain with axe, UAE official says

A co-pilot aboard a Flydubai flight to Israel attacked the pilot with a crash axe, attempting to gain control of the aircraft, according to an UAE prosecutor general. The Boeing aircraft, carrying over 170 passengers, plummeted more than 17,000 feet two and a half hours into its flight. Capt Smit Machchhar, the pilot, sustained injuries when he realized the plane was descending and acted to regain control.

Passengers and other crew members subsequently entered the cockpit and subdued the attacker, allowing the plane to be landed safely. The incident, which involved the use of a crash axe kept in the cockpit for emergencies, is currently under investigation by the UAE authorities to determine the circumstances and motives behind the attack.

The co-pilot, an Omani national, was subdued after calling out "Kill me, kill me!" to the crew, suggesting he was suicidal and potentially planning to crash the plane. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the attacker appeared to have undergone Islamist radical indoctrination. The injured pilot, Capt Machchhar, is reportedly in stable condition after receiving medical attention at a hospital in Abu Dhabi, where he is recovering well.