print-icon
print-icon
Add ZeroHedge as a preferred source on Google

Stabbed Indian Pilot Foils Crash Plot By Crazed Omani Co-Pilot As Jet Plunged 18,000 Feet

Tyler Durden's Photo
by Tyler Durden
Authored...

Summary: 

  • Heroic Captain Fights Off Omani Co-Pilot In Suspected Hijacking Of Israel-Bound Jet
  • CNN Sources Say Co-Pilot Tried To Hijack Plane 
  • Omani Co-Pilot Stabbed Pilot 
  • Midair Horror: FlyDubai Pilot Reportedly Stabbed, Israeli News Says Incident Treated As "Full-Fledged Terror Attack"

New Details 

New details have emerged about what happened on the Israel-bound Flydubai flight earlier this morning, when the co-pilot stabbed the pilot, who fought back to prevent the aircraft from being hijacked and crashed.

The New York Post cites Indian and Israeli outlets identifying the captain as Indian national Smit Machchhar, a veteran pilot with 10,000 flight hours. The Jerusalem Post reported that the suspected attacker was an Omani national who had worked for flydubai for less than a year.

Despite multiple stab wounds, Machchhar fought back, alerted the crew and released the cockpit door.

"The last moments of his energy, he used to click open the release on the door," Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister's office, told Reuters.

Spielman said the attacker was striking the aircraft's control panel violently in an apparent attempt to crash the plane.

"This is thought to be a 9/11 scenario where the co-pilot kills the pilot and crashes the plane inside of Israel with all the passengers, mostly Israelis," one source told The Telegraph.

Flightradar24 data shows the aircraft descended 18,000 feet in 12 minutes during the ordeal.

 

The suspected attacker has not been publicly identified, according to the NYPost.

Notably, the attempted hijacking comes about one week before the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks.

Omani Co-Pilot Stabbed Captain, Tried To Hijack Israel-Bound Jet

Two Israeli sources told CNN that the Omani co-pilot aboard the Israel-bound Flydubai flight earlier this morning attempted to hijack the plane and stabbed the pilot in the process. 

The outlet said:

The sources said it was not yet clear whether the intention would have been to crash the plane or to land it and take hostages.

Both the pilot and co-pilot were injured in the incident on the flight which was traveling to Tel Aviv but forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia

Added:

One of the main questions being looked into is why the flight crew included a pilot from a country with which Israel does not have diplomatic relations, the official said.

One of the pilots on Flydubai flight FZ1073 was Omani, two Israeli officials told CNN earlier. One of the officials said the Omani national was the co-pilot, allegedly the attacker in the violent incident.

Oman and Israel do not have formal diplomatic relations. It is not yet clear how the Omani pilot would have obtained clearance to fly to Israel.

A separate headline from Bloomberg cited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said the pilot tried to crash the plane. 

Scenes from inside the plane. 

The incident comes one week before the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks, when Hamas-led militants crossed from Gaza into Israel, killed about 1,200 people and took roughly 250 others hostage.

Midair Horror: FlyDubai Pilot Reportedly Stabbed, Israeli News Says Incident Treated As "Full-Fledged Terror Attack"

Flydubai Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv abruptly diverted to Saudi Arabia earlier today after a reported fight between the pilots triggered a distress alert, sources told CNN.

Flight-tracking data from Flightradar24 shows Flydubai Flight FZ1073 diverted over Jordanian airspace toward Saudi Arabia and rapidly descended 17,400 feet in just minutes around 0120 ET. Israeli fighter jets were scrambled.

According to Amit Segal of Israel's Channel 12 News:

Following situation assessments and passenger testimonies, Israel is treating the incident as a full-fledged terrorist attack. It appears that the co-pilot repeatedly stabbed the captain. Once the attack began, several crew members and passengers managed to break through the cockpit door and subdue the attacker.

According to one senior official, the co-pilot is currently being questioned, and indications are mounting that he intended to take control of the plane and crash it with the passengers on board.

Flydubai confirmed the midair incident and said the Boeing 737 landed safely in Tabuk, with all passengers safe and accounted for. However, the airline did not specify the nature of the incident.

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

Passengers told Israel's Channel 12 that they heard shouting near the cockpit and an altercation inside. They also said the aircraft plunged before landing in Saudi Arabia.

0