Hero Flydubai Pilot Smit Machchhar Recalls Desperate Fight Against Copilot During Hijacking Attempt

In his first public remarks since a suspected hijacking attempt on Wednesday, hero Flydubai captain Smit Machchhar explained that he kept fighting off a savage attack by his copilot because he could not let everybody else die.

Speaking to India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a video call on Friday, Machchhar described the terrifying ordeal on flight FZ 1073 heading to Tel Aviv, where a mid-air catastrophe was averted after passengers bravely rushed into the cockpit and stand-in pilots regained control. Badly injured and having suffered massive blood loss, Machchhar recalled lying on the floor of the cockpit while realizing the plane was going down, driving himself to make one last push to open the door and let passengers in to restrain the attacker.

Prime Minister Modi praised Machchhar’s courage, patience, and quick thinking for saving the lives of so many people. Machchhar is currently recovering at a hospital in Abu Dhabi, having initially received treatment in Saudi Arabia following the flight's emergency diversion.

Meanwhile, the suspect—the plane’s copilot and an Omani national—has been transferred from Saudi Arabia to the UAE, where he faces a terrorism investigation. Top officials and leaders, including UAE diplomatic adviser Anwar Gargash and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have addressed the incident, with investigations continuing into the motives and background of the attack.