Revealed: How the Co-Pilot Saved Israel-Bound Flight While Suffering Massive Blood Loss from Hijacker Stabbing
A man NBC News identified as the co-pilot of a plane heading to Israel from Dubai on Wednesday is being hailed as a hero for managing to fight off an attack by the aircraft’s pilot long enough to open the cockpit door so the pilot could be subdued.
The pilot apparently planned to crash the plane that was carrying mostly Israeli passengers.
NBC reported that Flydubai flight 1073 dropped 14,000 feet after the pilot of the plane, believed to be an Omani citizen, stabbed his co-pilot, Indian national Capt. Smit Machchhar.
But Machchhar fought back and managed to get to the cockpit door, allowing other members of the plane’s crew and passengers to get in and remove the pilot and stabilize the plane.
Off-duty pilots who happened to be on board then took over and landed the aircraft safely in Saudi Arabia.
Some reports of the incident identified the attacker as the aircraft’s co-pilot. The Jerusalem Post, for instance, reported that “the pilot-hijacker, who was the deputy pilot for the flight, stabbed the lead pilot and tried to crash the aircraft before as many as four passengers wounded him and tied him up.”
But regardless of status on the flight deck, he was a hero to the outside world.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on X, “My salute to the Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar for his extraordinary bravery. Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker — preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster.”
“He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and other nationals. I wish Captain Machchhar a speedy and full recovery. He is a true hero.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:
My salute to the Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar for his extraordinary bravery.
Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker —…
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) September 30, 2026
The Jerusalem Post reported that 166 passengers were Israelis. There were 174 passengers and crew, including 27 children, on board the plane, according to the Israeli news outlet Ynet.
Four of those on board held dual U.S. citizenship, according to NBC.
Machchhar suffered “massive blood loss,” according to CNN.
Dr. Shota Musaev, a dentist on board who tended to the wounded man, said, “I started helping the pilot because he had lost a lot of blood and was in bad shape. He was covered in cuts — his head, his hands — they were practically sliced open, almost severed in two.”
The wounded man, he said, was “praying the whole time.”
“I think that if we had waited even a few more moments, we would have lost him; his blood pressure had plummeted, he suddenly lost consciousness, and there was blood everywhere,” Musaev said.
Machchhar is in stable condition in a hospital in Saudi Arabia, according to India’s embassy in Riyadh.
Our Embassy in Riyadh and Consulate in Jeddah have been following the health condition of Mr Smit Machchhar, the brave Indian pilot of Flydubai flight that was diverted to Tabuk today. He is admitted in a hospital in Tabuk city in northwest Saudi Arabia and receiving necessary…
— India in Saudi Arabia (@IndianEmbRiyadh) September 30, 2026
The would-be hijacker is in custody in Saudi Arabia, according to NBC.
Netanyahu, who, as an Israeli special forces operator helped rescue the passengers of a hijacked plane in 1972, greeted the Flydubai passengers, including one who helped subdue the pilot, when they arrived at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv on Wednesday.
HALLELUJAH: THEY’RE HOME. 🇮🇱🙏
After roughly 9 hours stranded in Saudi Arabia following the attempted attack on their flight, the Israeli passengers have finally landed safely at Ben Gurion.
From staring death in the face at 30,000 feet to landing safely in Saudi Arabia, and… pic.twitter.com/8DBxkTzida
— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) September 30, 2026
The prime minister singled out one passenger, identified as Yaniv Hayoun, for his heroic actions. The man apologized for his appearance, still wearing the bloodied shirt and pants that he had on during the attack.
Netanyahu ignored the man’s concern and responded, “This is an honor,” and hugged him.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally greeted one of the passengers who helped subdue the alleged attacker aboard a FlyDubai flight traveling from the United Arab Emirates to Israel.
The passenger, identified in Israeli media as Yaniv, arrived still wearing a… pic.twitter.com/hCRTrIZS6P
— CBN News (@CBNNews) September 30, 2026
“I see a lion. I see a big hero,” Netanyahu added, according to a translation.
CNN reported that Hayoun told Netanyahu that he put the pilot in a chokehold and he and others dragged him out of the cockpit.
“I called out to a bunch of Israelis on board, and two other guys came over. We pinned him down,” Hayoun said. “I jumped back, grabbed the controls, and started pulling back the handles.”
Asked how he knew how to stabilize the plane, Hayoun responded, “I watch [the television series] ‘Air Crash Investigation,’ Mr. Prime Minister — really!”
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