Passengers aboard a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv were forced into a terrifying midair emergency Wednesday after Israeli officials said a co-pilot attacked the captain with a knife and apparently tried to crash the plane.
Flight FZ1073 was carrying more than 150 passengers, many of them Israeli, when the violent confrontation erupted inside the cockpit on Sept. 30.
The Boeing 737 had departed Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates and was headed for Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv when the aircraft suddenly began transmitting emergency signals.
Flight-tracking data showed the plane first squawked 7700, the international code for a general emergency.
Minutes later, it transmitted 7500, a code used to indicate unlawful interference or a possible hijacking. The signal triggered an immediate security response in Israel.
Israeli fighter jets were scrambled because authorities feared the commercial aircraft might have been hijacked. AP News
Inside the plane, passengers said the situation had become chaotic.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later said one pilot stabbed the other and apparently attempted to crash the aircraft.
The plane then entered a sudden and dramatic descent.
Reuters reported that the jet plunged nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds during the most severe portion of the emergency. Other flight-tracking data showed the aircraft dropping from roughly 34,000 feet to around 17,000 feet during the incident. Reuters
Passengers recalled screaming and confusion as the plane rapidly lost altitude.
One traveler said people initially had no idea what was happening until word began spreading through the cabin that there had been a stabbing in the cockpit.
According to passenger accounts, the injured captain was able to unlock the cockpit door before collapsing.
That allowed passengers and crew members to move forward and confront the alleged attacker.
Several people reportedly helped overpower and restrain the co-pilot while other qualified crew members took control of the aircraft. Reuters
The dramatic intervention appears to have prevented a much larger disaster.
Video and witness accounts described both pilots as injured following the struggle.
Passengers also reported seeing blood inside the aircraft, while footage recorded after the emergency showed frightened travelers crying and praying in their seats.
Flydubai has not publicly confirmed every allegation surrounding the stabbing or the accused co-pilot’s motive.
The airline said only that Flight FZ1073 had experienced an onboard incident and stressed that authorities were investigating.
That distinction remains important because although Israeli officials have described what happened as an apparent attempt to crash the plane, investigators have not yet publicly announced a final motive or determination about whether the incident was terrorism. Reuters
The aircraft briefly entered Jordanian airspace during the emergency before turning back toward Saudi Arabia.
Flight tracking also showed the plane making several abrupt altitude changes and transmitting alternating emergency codes.
It ultimately diverted to Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely.
All of the passengers were accounted for.
Both pilots were taken for medical treatment following the landing, and Saudi authorities reportedly detained the pilot accused of carrying out the attack. AP News
The emergency created an unusual diplomatic situation.
Saudi Arabia and Israel do not maintain formal diplomatic relations, although Saudi airspace has been opened to Israel-bound commercial flights in recent years.
Saudi officials nevertheless received the aircraft, provided assistance to passengers and coordinated with Israeli authorities as arrangements were made to get the travelers home.
The passengers later continued to Israel on another Flydubai aircraft and arrived safely at Ben Gurion Airport. AP News
Netanyahu praised the passengers and crew members who intervened, saying their actions helped prevent what could have been a catastrophic loss of life.
Israeli officials have similarly described the episode as a narrowly avoided disaster.
Investigators are now expected to examine cockpit voice recordings, flight data, crew records, surveillance footage and witness accounts to reconstruct exactly how the violence began.
One major question will be how a weapon was brought into the cockpit and whether it belonged to a crew member or was introduced another way.
Authorities will also likely examine what caused the aircraft’s rapid descent and how quickly the reserve crew was able to regain control.
The incident is especially unusual because modern cockpit security is largely designed to keep unauthorized people out.
In this case, the alleged threat came from someone already authorized to be inside.
For the passengers aboard FZ1073, what began as an ordinary flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv turned into a life-or-death struggle thousands of feet above the Middle East.
Despite the violent cockpit confrontation, the terrifying plunge and the hijacking alert, the plane landed safely and no passengers were killed.
Are the pilots not check before they go on the plane