Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar is being widely praised as a hero after a dramatic mid-air incident on Flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv on 30 September 2026. Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, opened the locked cockpit door, and helped prevent what Israeli officials described as an attempt by the co-pilot to crash the aircraft carrying 174 people, including 27 children.
The Boeing 737 MAX 8 made an emergency landing in Tabuk, northwestern Saudi Arabia. All passengers and crew were reported safe. Machchhar is recovering in a hospital in Tabuk and is in stable condition, according to the Indian Embassy in Riyadh.
The flight was a routine journey of about three hours and 15 minutes. Around two hours into the flight, while cruising at approximately 34,000 feet, a violent confrontation erupted in the cockpit.
According to Israeli officials, the Omani co-pilot allegedly stabbed Captain Machchhar and attempted to take control of the aircraft to crash it. Flight-tracking data showed the plane plunging dramatically — losing more than 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds (some reports note a drop of around 17,000 feet in under two minutes).
The aircraft transmitted the general emergency code 7700, followed by the hijacking code 7500. Israel scrambled fighter jets as a precaution. Despite his injuries and being covered in blood on the cockpit floor, Machchhar managed to activate the release and open the reinforced cockpit door. This allowed passengers, cabin crew, and two off-duty Flydubai pilots travelling as passengers to enter, overpower the co-pilot, and help stabilise and land the aircraft safely in Tabuk.
Both pilots were taken to hospital. The co-pilot has been arrested by Saudi authorities and is under investigation. Flydubai confirmed an “in-flight incident,” stated that all passengers were safe and accounted for, and said it is cooperating fully with authorities. The UAE aviation regulator is also investigating.
