Axe Attack in Cockpit on Flydubai Flight
On a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, the co-pilot attacked the captain with an axe and attempted to seize control of the aircraft.
During a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, the co-pilot injured the captain in the cockpit with a crash axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft, an incident that authorities have classified as a terrorist act.
Development of the Incident and Investigation
UAE authorities announced that the attack targeting the captain by the co-pilot on a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was a terrorist attempt.
Sources conducting the investigation shared that the suspect who carried out the attack is Omani citizen Hamam al-Hammami.
Intervention and Rescue by the Captain
The heavily injured Indian-origin captain Smit Machchhar opened the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to enter, and prevented the aircraft from crashing.
While passengers and crew neutralized the attacker, the crash of the plane was prevented at the last moment and no lives were lost in the incident.
International Reactions and Visits
Captain Machchhar, whose treatment continues at a hospital in Abu Dhabi, was visited by UAE Deputy Prime Minister Hamdan bin Mohammed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the attacker had been radicalized and that potential connections behind the incident were being investigated.