Flydubai flight FZ1073 bound for Tel Aviv averted disaster after passengers and crew subdued a co-pilot who stabbed the captain and attempted to disable the aircraft. The Boeing 737 MAX plunged roughly 17,000 feet before off-duty aviators onboard helped regain control and divert safely to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met the arriving travelers upon their return to Ben Gurion Airport on Wednesday (30), hailing both the wounded captain, Smit Machchhar, and the passengers who intervened as heroes.
What happened inside the Flydubai cockpit during flight FZ1073?
The incident began as the scheduled service from Dubai crossed airspace near Jordan and Saudi Arabia carrying an estimated 170 to 180 passengers. An Omani co-pilot attacked Captain Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, with a blade and attempted to crash the passenger jet or destroy its guidance controls. Despite suffering severe stab wounds, Machchhar resisted the assault and unlocked the reinforced cockpit door before losing consciousness, allowing travelers in the forward cabin to enter.
Israeli passenger Yaniv Hayoun rushed into the flight deck, placed the assailant in a chokehold, and pulled back on the control column to arrest the steep descent. Other passengers, including Zvika Meness, joined the confrontation inside the cabin to secure the attacker. Meness stated that three travelers jumped on the co-pilot and bound his limbs using plastic zip ties found in the cockpit along with cables from passenger multimedia headphones.
Off-duty airline pilots who were traveling as passengers then entered the flight deck, assumed command of the Boeing 737 MAX, and coordinated an immediate descent toward the nearest viable runway.
Smit Machchhar and passengers praised by Benjamin Netanyahu at Ben Gurion
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the actions taken by both the captain and the travelers who prevented the aircraft from crashing. In an official statement, Netanyahu affirmed: “Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker — preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster. He is a true hero.”
Family members, onlookers, and medical teams greeted the travelers at Ben Gurion Airport late Wednesday night after Flydubai dispatched a replacement aircraft to collect the passengers from Saudi Arabia. Meeting Hayoun directly at the terminal, Netanyahu told him: “I look at you and I see a lion. I see a great hero.” Passenger Haim Lazarovich described the terror of the sudden drop, telling reporters at the terminal: “Thank God I’m alive.”
Timeline of the emergency diversion to Tabuk
- 08:44: Flight FZ1073 transmits an emergency transponder signal and begins a sharp descent while en route from Dubai.
- 09:45: The aircraft touches down safely at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
- Evening hours: A relief aircraft departs Saudi Arabia and delivers the passengers to Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.
Tabuk landing and Flydubai operational measures
Saudi authorities immediately detained the Omani co-pilot at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport, transferring both pilots to a local hospital in Tabuk for medical treatment. Following the security breach, Flydubai announced an immediate temporary suspension of all its commercial flights to Tel Aviv pending the outcome of the official investigation. Commercial services between the United Arab Emirates and Israel had operated regularly since diplomatic relations normalized under the Abraham Accords in 2020.
- Flight designation: Flydubai FZ1073 operating from Dubai International Airport to Ben Gurion Airport
- Aircraft type: Boeing 737 MAX carrying between 170 and 180 people
- Diversion site: Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
- Detention status: Assailant co-pilot held in custody by Saudi Arabian law enforcement
Investigators in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have not publicly released the full civil identity of the detained co-pilot, and the official inquiry has not yet concluded whether the attack was an attempted act of terrorism or a suicide attempt.