Overview
- The episode began on Wednesday, Sept. 30, when the Omani co‑pilot allegedly attacked Flydubai captain Smit Machchhar with an emergency axe during a Dubai‑to‑Tel Aviv flight and the plane made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
- Machchhar told Israeli and Indian leaders he was struck from behind after the co‑pilot said he wanted to pray, that his vision blurred during a steep descent, and that he opened the cockpit door twice so passengers and travelling crew could rush in and restrain the attacker.
- The injured captain is recovering in the UAE in stable condition while Saudi authorities hold and have interrogated the alleged attacker and UAE prosecutors have described the act as an attempted terrorist attack.
- Reporting that Israel had received the flight’s crew list before takeoff has prompted scrutiny of how crew vetting and intelligence checks are shared and applied for foreign flights to Israel.
- UAE, Saudi and Israeli investigators are coordinating a developing probe into motive, the suspect’s background and whether changes are needed to crew screening, cockpit tool storage and cross‑border security procedures.