On flight to Israel, pilot is stabbed, plane plunges before passengers tackle attacker

Updated September 30, 2026 at 4:53 PM CDT

TEL AVIV, Israel, and RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — One pilot stabbed another pilot on a flydubai flight headed to Tel Aviv on Wednesday, and may have tried to crash the plane of mostly Israeli passengers, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu said a passenger recounted that as the plane "went into a spin and began to plunge," passengers and crew members got into the cockpit and subdued the attacker as he was "sabotaging the aircraft's systems."

Flydubai said in a statement that an "altercation occurred in the flight deck" of flight FZ 1073, traveling from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to Tel Aviv. It said the flight crew secured the aircraft and diverted the plane to make an emergency landing at an airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. There were no reports of injuries to passengers.

Passengers later recounted scary moments aboard the plane. The aviation tracking site Flightradar24 said data shows at one point the plane descended more than 14,000 feet in under 30 seconds — way faster than normal.

Ariel Schalit / AP

Netanyahu said the Saudi authorities arrested the suspected attacker and are questioning him. Saudi Arabia did not immediately confirm the arrest, but the Saudi transportation safety authority said officials are investigating the incident.

A statement from Cluster2, the Saudi company that manages the country's airports, said the flight's captain and first officer, the co-pilot, were being treated for injuries in a hospital.

Flydubai airline said the motives behind the incident were unknown and remain subject to a formal investigation. The United Arab Emirates' civil aviation authority also said, through the state-run Emirates News Agency, that it is investigating the "causes and circumstances of the incident."

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz initially called it "an attempted jihadist terrorist attack," without providing details. Netanyahu described it as "a serious security incident."

Attacked pilot hailed as hero

There was no official identification of the suspected attacker.

But the Israeli and Indian governments identified the pilot who was attacked as Indian national Smit Machchhar, and praised his 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," Netanyahu said. "He is a true hero."

Passengers land in Tel Aviv

The passengers have since been flown from Saudi Arabia to Israel, on a different plane from their earlier flight that had made the emergency landing.

Ariel Schalit / AP

Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv was full of journalists awaiting the arrival of the passengers. There were also many families, some with balloons and flowers to welcome their loved ones after a scary experience.

The passengers slowly emerged through the arrivals door dragging suitcases behind them, some crying, some smiling, looking relieved or exhausted.

Ariel Schalit / AP

Dan Zoler was traveling with his wife and two small children on the flight. He told NPR that after the pilot was stabbed, he saw three passengers throw themselves on the co-pilot who carried out the attack, and capture him. He said another pilot on the plane took the controls and landed the plane in Saudi Arabia.

Throughout the ordeal, Zoler said he was trying to distract his young son, telling him this is not normal.

"I told him that it's something that happened like once in 25 years. That I want him to be calm. And we are happy to come back," he said smiling, patting his son on the head.

Flights between Israel and the United Arab Emirates are a main connection for vacationers and happen several times a day. Flydubai said it was suspending its flights to and from Israel while authorities investigate the incident.

This comes at a sensitive political moment in Israel with national elections less than a month away, a vote that will determine whether Netanyahu remains prime minister. He has been campaigning on the notion that he alone can protect Israelis from security threats.

Itay Stern contributed reporting from Tel Aviv; Ahmed Abuhamda contributed from Cairo.

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