Flydubai co-pilot attempted terror attack during flight, UAE says

The co-pilot of a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv attempted to carry out a terrorist act by attacking the captain with a crash axe in an attempt to take control of the aircraft. According to the UAE prosecutor general, the co-pilot, who was an Omani national, launched the attack two and a half hours into the journey, causing the plane to plunge over 17,000ft.

The captain, Smit Machchhar, was injured and lying on the cockpit floor when he realised the plane was sinking and managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to overpower the attacker. The plane was then landed safely by on-duty crew travelling on the flight.

The UAE attorney general's office stated that investigations were ongoing to determine the full circumstances and motives of the incident. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attacker had called out "Kill me, kill me!" after being subdued and had undergone Islamist radical indoctrination, suggesting he was suicidal and likely intended to down the plane, according to BBC News.

Brief written by urgent.news from Ajel English, BBC News, BBC World, Malay Mail, Dawn — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.