Overview
- The Flydubai Boeing 737 MAX 8 flying from the United Arab Emirates to Tel Aviv sent transponder code 7700 then 7500 and diverted to Tabuk in northwest Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
- Israel scrambled fighter jets and Chief of Staff Ejal Zamir consulted senior commanders while Ben Gurion Airport briefly halted departures before resuming normal operations.
- Israeli media reports and statements from the airline indicate the emergency signals were not from an external hijacking but from an escalating dispute in the cockpit.
- About 170–180 passengers, many reported as Israeli, remained safe and Flydubai said it would send a replacement aircraft to pick them up as authorities open an investigation.
- The landing in Saudi Arabia — despite limited formal ties with Israel — and a similar July false-alarm have focused attention on transponder procedures, cockpit conduct rules, and cross-border emergency coordination.