Passengers subdued a Flydubai pilot after he stabbed the other pilot and plunged the Tel Aviv-bound aircraft 17,000 feet in under two minutes. Yaniv Hayun placed the attacker in a chokehold while fellow travelers used zip ties and headphones to secure him before the flight landed safely in Saudi Arabia.
Passengers flying from Dubai to Israel quickly realized something was dangerously wrong when the aircraft suddenly dropped, setting off chaos in the cabin as lights went out and screams echoed through the aisle.
Cockpit Chaos and the 17,000-Foot Plunge
Yaniv Hayun, appearing in a bloodstained shirt after the ordeal, noticed the violent drop and rushed toward the front of the aircraft alongside other travelers. They attempted to force open the cockpit door, but the injured pilot was very close to it. Before collapsing, the wounded crew member managed to open the door.
Inside the flight deck, Hayun found one pilot down and the attacker positioned between the seats, trying to destroy the instruments to disable the plane. Hayun grabbed the assailant, put him in a chokehold, and dragged him out of the cockpit in a matter of seconds. With the help of two other passengers, they pinned the attacker down to secure him.
Zip Ties, Headphones, and Air Crash Investigation Expertise
Once the assailant was hauled into the cabin, passenger Zvika Meness told Kan that he and others tied him up with his own zip ties and with the multimedia headphones.
With the attacker neutralized, Hayun jumped back into the flight deck and started pulling the controls
. When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later asked whether he knew what he was doing, the passenger offered a candid reply: I watch Air Crash Investigation, Mr Prime Minister.
As Hayun worked the controls, the aircraft began to level out. Two on-duty pilots who had been in the passenger cabin arrived at the front, and one took over command from Hayun.
Safe Landing in Saudi Arabia and Official Reactions
The Flydubai flight ultimately landed at Tabuk airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia. The injured pilot, Indian national Captain Smit Machchhar, was transported to a hospital where the Indian embassy confirmed he is in stable condition. Prime Minister Netanyahu praised Machchhar as a true hero
of extraordinary bravery
and hailed Hayun as a great hero
and a lion
.
Following the ordeal, passengers were transported on a repatriation flight to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport, where crowds greeted them with music, singing, dancing, and Israeli flags. Thank God I’m alive,
passenger Haim Lazarovich told journalists, noting that the most terrifying moment was when the pilot lost control. Oran Choen, an 18-year-old traveler, described the ordeal as feeling like hell
.
Investigation and Unanswered Motives
Saudi authorities arrested the attacker, where he is being questioned. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz characterized the event as an attempted jihadist terror attack
. Beyond that designation, officials have not yet released any official motive or further information regarding the suspect.
