New details have emerged about the incident on the Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, which made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on September 30, 2026.
Avianity reported on the emergency landing of flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv right after it happened.
According to Reuters, the attacker was the first officer, an Omani citizen. He attacked the captain, Smit Macchhar, an Indian citizen. Israeli authorities said the first officer allegedly tried to steer the plane toward the ground. His motives are being established as part of the investigation.
After the attack, the aircraft descended sharply: its altitude dropped from roughly 10,000 to 5,100 meters in less than a minute. The plane transmitted distress signals, including code 7500, which is used in cases of unlawful interference with an aircraft (hijacking).
Passengers helped get into the cockpit
According to passengers, the seriously injured captain managed to open the cockpit door. Several people went in and helped subdue the first officer. Passenger Yaniv Hayun said that after this he briefly took the controls and pulled the yoke toward himself to stop the descent.
Two other Flydubai pilots were also on board, scheduled to operate a different flight. According to passenger Almog Itali, one of them was British. He took over the controls and helped stabilize the aircraft before landing in Tabuk. Flydubai confirms that crew members who were on board flew the plane and carried out the landing.
After touchdown, both pilots were taken to hospital. There were 174 passengers on board, including 27 children. The passengers were later flown to Israel on another aircraft.
The exact circumstances of the attack and its motive are still being established. Flydubai urged against drawing premature conclusions until the investigation is complete.