https://www.foxnews.com/world/...fighter-jet-response

Published September 30, 2026 5:03am EDT | Updated September 30, 2026 7:48am EDT

A Flydubai passenger said the co-pilot apparently stabbed the captain during a cockpit altercation before the Israel-bound jet plunged thousands of feet, triggering a terrifying scene aboard the aircraft and an emergency diversion to Saudi Arabia Wednesday.

Two Israeli officials told Reuters that the co-pilot was believed to have stabbed the captain before cabin crew entered the cockpit and took control of the plane. The officials said Israel's current assessment was that the incident may have been an attempted "terror attack." The Jerusalem Post separately reported that the growing assessment among Israel's security establishment, including the IDF, Mossad and Shin Bet, was that the incident was intended as an act of terror.

The passenger told Fox News that accounts of what happened remained conflicting, but said passengers understood that the co-pilot had stabbed the captain and then collapsed onto the controls.

"There are many different accounts, but apparently the co-pilot stabbed the captain and collapsed onto the controls, shutting down the entire instrument panel. We began plunging downward for several minutes. Everyone on the plane was screaming, the overhead compartments opened, and the power went out. We were sure we were going to die. It was very scary," the passenger said.

Flydubai has not publicly confirmed the reported stabbing or the circumstances surrounding the cockpit confrontation. Saudi Arabia's Tabuk airport said both pilots were hospitalized after suffering injuries, according to Reuters. An investigation into the incident remains underway.

The Dubai-to-Tel Aviv flight landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, and everyone aboard was reported safe, according to officials.

A regional official briefed on the incident said an altercation broke out in the cockpit and apparently involved the pilots, though it was not immediately clear what sparked the confrontation. Israeli media, citing security officials, also reported that a dispute between the two pilots was behind the emergency.

"The crew have been questioned as part of the investigation," the regional official said, according to The Associated Press, without saying whether anyone had been detained.

The incident prompted an immediate security response in Israel, where authorities initially feared the plane — carrying more than 100 Israeli passengers, according to The Jerusalem Post — could have been hijacked. Israel scrambled fighter jets as the situation unfolded.

The aircraft transmitted an emergency alert during the flight, according to publicly available flight-tracking information. Flight FZ1073 had departed Dubai and was headed for Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv before diverting to Tabuk.

Flightradar24 data showed the aircraft suddenly plunging nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds before the first emergency signal, according to Reuters.

Capt. Meidan Barr, former chairman of the Israel Airline Pilot Association, told Fox News Channel that such a rapid loss of altitude would ordinarily resemble an emergency descent, such as one performed following a loss of cabin pressure.

"Losing like 15,000 feet in two or three minutes, that is something that you do in, like, an emergency descent when you lose pressure," Barr said, adding that the aircraft's safe landing was significant and would allow investigators to determine what went wrong.

Flight-tracking data also showed the aircraft transmitting emergency transponder code 7700 before briefly switching to 7500, a code used to signal unlawful interference with an aircraft, and later returning to 7700.

Passengers described a tense scene aboard the aircraft as the emergency unfolded. Travelers told Israel's Channel 12 by phone that they heard shouting from passengers near the front of the plane who had apparently heard the cockpit altercation. They also said the aircraft dipped steeply before landing in Saudi Arabia.

The account provided directly to Fox News offered a more harrowing description of the sudden descent, with the passenger saying people screamed as overhead compartments opened and power aboard the aircraft went out.

After landing, passengers remained aboard the plane as a heavy Saudi security presence surrounded the aircraft, according to their accounts to the Israeli outlet.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office later said the situation was under control and that Israeli authorities were working to bring the passengers home. The scare came as Netanyahu has warned in recent days about unspecified heightened security threats facing Israel.

Netanyahu convened security consultations over the incident and cleared the remainder of his schedule to manage the crisis, according to Reuters. The Jerusalem Post reported that Israeli airspace was temporarily closed before reopening after the aircraft landed in Saudi Arabia.

Flydubai later confirmed that FZ1073 had experienced an incident while traveling to Ben Gurion Airport and landed safely in Tabuk.

"Our teams are working closely with the relevant authorities," the carrier said. "Further updates will be issued as additional confirmed details become available."

The exact circumstances surrounding the reported cockpit confrontation remained unclear Wednesday. Flydubai has not publicly confirmed the reported stabbing or provided details about what led to the cockpit confrontation.

While disputes between pilots serious enough to affect a flight are rare, similar incidents have occurred. Two Air France pilots were suspended in 2022 after fighting in the cockpit during a flight from Geneva to Paris. That aircraft did not divert and landed as scheduled.

The initial hijacking fears carried particular weight in Israel, where aviation security has long been shaped by a history of attacks on Israeli travelers and aircraft. Palestinian militants carried out a series of hijackings and attacks involving Israelis during the 1960s and 1970s. Israel has not experienced an aircraft hijacking in decades and maintains stringent security procedures for Israel-bound flights.

Flydubai is a lower-cost sister carrier of Emirates. Flights between Israel and the United Arab Emirates began after the two countries normalized relations in 2020, opening the UAE as a major destination for Israeli travelers.

quote:

The officials said Israel's current assessment was that the incident may have been an attempted "terror attack."

I can believe that.

“This is the moment a passenger covered in blood filmed a plea for help from Wednesday's 'hijacked' flight from Dubai to Israel, moments after helping overpower a knifeman.

This morning's incident saw the pilot of the FlyDubai jet allegedly attack his co-pilot and try to hijack the flight with the intention of crashing it, according to an Israeli official.

A 'major disaster was narrowly avoided', the official told the Jerusalem Post, describing how passengers onboard the flight managed to subdue the pilot and bring him under control.

The hero who helped subdue the knifeman is seen in footage with blood dripping down his face, emerging from a gash that stretches from his forehead down to his nose.

'We're here during the hijacking of an airplane. At this point we've subdued the terrorists, we're approaching landing. Whoever is hearing me, we need help,' he tells the camera

'We're landing in Tabuk, apparently in Saudi Arabia. An unknown, unfamiliar area. On the plane, everybody is safe and sound, other than the pilot. We need help,' he adds. …”

https://mol.im/a/16172111

Seems like the f/o had plans to crash the plane, maybe.

quote:

Originally posted by sourdough44:
Seems like the f/o had plans to crash the plane, maybe.

Yeah. From the article immediately above your post:
“This morning's incident saw the pilot of the FlyDubai jet allegedly attack his co-pilot and try to hijack the flight with the intention of crashing it, according to an Israeli official.“

quote:

After landing, passengers remained aboard the plane as a heavy Saudi security presence surrounded the aircraft, according to their accounts to the Israeli outlet.

Saudi security has a brutal reputation. They'll likely torture the truth out of the both the pilot and the copilot.

Yeah, no pleading the 5th over there.

Not the first time, and a time or two before it succeeded.
Any comment about why would be considered “profiling.”

"the co-pilot had stabbed the captain and then collapsed onto the controls"

"both pilots were hospitalized after suffering injuries"

So, who landed the plane? I can't believe the cabin crew would let the co-pilot land the plane.

I wonder if other 'terrorists' were onboard, ready to spring into action, until the unexpected descent and mayhem ruined their plans. Better to fade in with the other passengers to 'terrorize' another day.

And conflicting reports - who, exactly, stabbed who? Pilot stabbed co-pilot or co-pilot stabbed pilot?

Fox News: "the co-pilot was believed to have stabbed the captain"

Daily Mail: "the pilot of the FlyDubai jet allegedly attack his co-pilot"

229,

News reports there was a flight crew on board that was dead-heading, which would explain how the plane was safely landed. (not sure how they go into the cock-pit, unless the doors have universal key cards)

quote:

Originally posted by 229DAK:
"the co-pilot had stabbed the captain and then collapsed onto the controls"

"both pilots were hospitalized after suffering injuries"

So, who landed the plane? I can't believe the cabin crew would let the co-pilot land the plane.

I wonder if other 'terrorists' were onboard, ready to spring into action, until the unexpected descent and mayhem ruined their plans. Better to fade in with the other passengers to 'terrorize' another day.

And conflicting reports - who, exactly, stabbed who? Pilot stabbed co-pilot or co-pilot stabbed pilot?

Fox News: "the co-pilot was believed to have stabbed the captain"

Daily Mail: "the pilot of the FlyDubai jet allegedly attack his co-pilot"

After reading the Daily Mail article I had the same question.
Apparently the Captain was attacked by a copilot. The Captain is seen on the floor with oxygen being administered.
The attacker, apparently the copilot was subdued and in the process also injured so who is left to land the plane?

Current reports from Time of Israel and X indicate that the pilot may have unlocked or given an access code to unlock the cabin door in the melee.
Two pilots who recovered normal flight and landed in KSA reported to be "Ukrainian and Russian" but that's probably ethnic identity. There are millions of Israeli immigrants from Russia, and I imagine from Ukraine.
The NYT reports it was probably not a hijacking, but a routine attempted suicide-by-plane-crashing by the co-pilot.

"Overall, the probability that a plane full of Israelis will contain a trained assault team, two additional pilots, and, statistically, at least one cardiac surgeon, psychologist, lawyer, and diamond dealer is substantially higher than 50%."
Eylon Levy

And another “You must be prepared to save yourself.”
Good on all those who saved themselves and the rest.

Bibi is giving major credit to the stabbed pilot who managed to unlock the cabin door. Otherwise they were all doomed.

^^^^ Truly a hero, if you think about it. I can imagine him saying to himself in the middle of mortal combat, “If I’m going to die today, I’m going to make sure others will stop you from accomplishing your goal”.

“The co-pilot who attempted to hijack an Israel-bound flight had previously been banned from flying over concerns he had adopted extremist views as it's revealed he spent time in ISIS-controlled Syria.

Omani national Hamam Al Hammami, 29, severely wounded captain Smit Machchhar using the onboard crash axe as he attempted to take control of the Flydubai plane, which was heading towards Tel Aviv on Wednesday morning.

Passengers and crew grappled with the co-pilot to regain control of the plane, which had plummeted 14,000ft in just 29 seconds. It is believed a British off-duty pilot was among the saviours.

The co-pilot had previously worked with Oman's national airline as a trainee in 2024 but was removed from flying because of concerns that he may have been influenced by radical groups from time spent in Syria, according to officials. He was then moved to an administrative job at Oman Air. …”

https://mol.im/a/16180085

To my recollection, a passenger has never taken over the controls, on a US carrier, for an incapacitated pilot.
But, my wofe would ask me every time we flew, for the first year or two we wwre dating "could you land this plane?"
My answer, probably, but it wouldn't be fun for anyone.

For our big bird pilots here: What would you put the odds on a single engine prop pilot being able to land a 737?
I recall a mythbusters episode where both guys did it on a Sim. With no assistance, they both crashed, but were both able to land with assist over the radio.

Take someone with the ability to ride a bicycle, and never anything else, put him/her in a runaway heavy loaded semi on I-70 in Colorado, on the steep mountain grades west of the Eisenhower Tunnel, (Quantum Leap Style).

Now, stop the tractor.