An Omani national attempted to take control of Flydubai Flight FZ1073 after stabbing a fellow pilot on Wednesday, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia, according to the account provided by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and preliminary Israeli findings.
The flight was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv with more than 170 people on board when the incident occurred two hours after departure. The aircraft took off from Dubai International Airport at 03:05 GMT (07:05 local time) and plunged more than 17,000ft (5,200m) during the attack.
The injured pilot was identified as Indian national Captain Smit Machchhar. Netanyahu said the attacker was an Omani national.
The aircraft landed at Tabuk Airport in north-west Saudi Arabia at 06:58. The alleged attacker was arrested in Saudi Arabia and is expected to be transferred to the UAE. The co-pilot is currently being questioned in Saudi Arabia.
Netanyahu said Israeli investigators had found indications that the attacker 'underwent Islamist radical indoctrination'. He said it was looking 'very likely' that the attacker 'was going to down the plane'.
A security source said preliminary findings from an Israeli investigation also pointed to an intention to crash the plane. The findings remain preliminary, and the brief provides no details of the investigation’s methodology, evidence or timetable.
In an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu said the attacker was subdued during the incident. He said that afterwards the man was 'calling out to the aircrew kill me, kill me'.
Netanyahu said the apparent suicidal intent, together with 'Islamist tendencies' and 'radicalisation found in his background', offered 'a pretty good clue' to the attacker’s motivation. He did not identify any specific group or affiliation.
The episode has left several central questions unresolved. The available information does not describe how the attacker was restrained, whether the co-pilot took part in the response, or whether other crew members or passengers were injured. It also remains unclear what formal charges or legal proceedings may follow after the expected transfer to the UAE.
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