Overview
- On Sept. 30 a Flydubai Boeing 737 from Dubai to Tel Aviv suffered a cockpit attack in which the first officer allegedly struck Captain Smit Machchhar with a crash axe and the aircraft plunged thousands of feet before diverting to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia; crew, passengers and off‑duty pilots restrained the suspect and all on board survived.
- UAE prosecutors say the accused is a 29‑year‑old Omani co‑pilot who has confessed that he was inspired by the Sept. 11 attacks and had planned to crash the plane into Ben Gurion Airport.
- Captain Machchhar was seriously injured, was treated in Abu Dhabi and has received international praise while Israel announced a civilian bravery award for him to be given after his recovery.
- On Oct. 27 President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan conferred the First Class Order of Zayed II on the captain and crew in a ceremony attended by senior UAE leaders to recognize their actions that saved lives.
- Multinational criminal and safety probes are continuing across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel, India and the United States with investigators examining the suspect’s background, cross‑border vetting failures and how cockpit emergency tools and access were handled, and carriers are reviewing crew‑clearance practices for flights to Israel.