TEL AVIV, Israel, Oct 1 – The motive behind an attack inside the cockpit of a FlyDubai passenger jet remains unclear as investigators examine how a flight bound for Israel descended thousands of feet in less than a minute before making an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
The Boeing 737 Max 8 was carrying 174 people from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday when an Omani national serving as the copilot allegedly attacked the Indian captain with a knife. The assault left the captain injured and created a crisis inside the cockpit while the aircraft was flying at about 33,000 feet.
The situation became even more dangerous after the aircraft entered a steep and uncontrolled descent. Israeli passengers aboard the plane later described a chaotic scene in which the wounded captain managed to open the cockpit door and allow passengers to enter.
Several passengers then helped restrain the copilot and assisted the crew as they tried to regain control of the aircraft. One of the passengers involved, Asaf Rajuan, described the experience as a desperate struggle for survival in a statement shared by the Israeli presidency.
“We felt helpless, suspended in midair, and I didn’t know who to turn to. But it was all instinct to survive,” Rajuan said.
The aircraft eventually landed in the Saudi city of Tabuk, roughly an hour after the emergency began. The captain, identified as Smit Machchhar, was later reported to be in stable condition by the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia.
The identity of the copilot has not been publicly released. A regional official briefed on the investigation said the suspect remained under arrest and that authorities from Saudi Arabia, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and the United States were involved in efforts to establish what led to the attack.
The official said investigators were examining multiple possibilities, including terrorism and possible mental health-related factors, while emphasizing that no explanation had yet been established.
Israeli intelligence and security officials were also expected to participate in questioning the suspect in Saudi Arabia, according to another regional official. The officials spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly.
Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have formal diplomatic relations, but the two countries have maintained security contacts through unofficial and alternative channels. The involvement of Israeli officials in the investigation therefore adds an unusual dimension to a case involving a flight traveling between the UAE and Israel.
The United Arab Emirates government said its own investigation team had started examining the incident, including whether the attack had any connection to terrorism. Emirati authorities also said UAE law applies to crimes committed aboard aircraft registered under its jurisdiction.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there was no immediate indication that Iran was connected to the incident. Asked by Fox News whether Iranian involvement was suspected, Netanyahu said it was too early to draw such a conclusion.
He also told CNN that Israel had not received any specific warning before the incident.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he and Netanyahu discussed the episode at length during a telephone conversation. Trump told reporters at the White House that the copilot appeared to have been either a terrorist or someone acting irrationally, although investigators had not reached a conclusion about the motive.
Netanyahu later said he had spoken with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and that the two had agreed Israel would participate in questioning the suspect.
The incident comes at a particularly sensitive moment for Israel, which is approaching the anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that triggered the war in Gaza. Netanyahu had also warned in recent days about unspecified heightened security threats, although Israeli officials have not said that the warnings were directly connected to the FlyDubai incident.
The passengers on the aircraft included people from Israel, India and the UAE, according to Israel’s Foreign Ministry. The U.S. State Department said four of the passengers were American citizens.
FlyDubai has since announced that its flights to and from Israel would be suspended following the incident.
Passengers helped restrain copilot as aircraft plunged
Details emerging from the flight paint a picture of a rapidly developing emergency that left the passengers and crew with very little time to react.
According to flight-tracking data from Flightradar24, the aircraft was cruising at approximately 33,000 feet when it descended to around 17,000 feet, or roughly 5,100 meters, in about one minute. The aircraft then made an erratic turn near the Jordanian border before eventually reaching Tabuk.
The violent descent placed enormous stress on the aircraft and everyone inside it. The aircraft’s rudder was reportedly torn away during the incident, raising further questions about how the Boeing 737 Max 8 was able to remain controllable and eventually land safely.
The Indian captain’s training school in New Zealand described the outcome as extraordinary. Philip Kean, head of the flight school where Machchhar trained, said the aircraft’s survival through such a severe maneuver was remarkable.
Kean described the landing as “miraculous,” noting that the aircraft was not designed to endure the kind of dive it had experienced.
The captain himself was also credited with playing a critical role in preventing a far more serious outcome. Despite being injured during the confrontation, he was able to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers to reach the flight deck.
Among those passengers was Shota Musayev, a dentist who had treated the injured captain. Video recorded inside the aircraft showed the suspected attacker on his knees with his hands tied behind his back.
The passengers’ intervention came as the aircraft was already in serious difficulty. People aboard the plane were reportedly screaming as the crew attempted to find a suitable airport for an emergency landing.
A person who heard communications between the aircraft and air traffic controllers described the pilot issuing a mayday call and reporting that a hijacking was taking place. The same person said the aircraft was initially turned away by Saudi Arabia and Jordan before eventually being allowed to land in Tabuk.
The reasons given for the reported refusals were not immediately clear.
The incident has also drawn attention to the actions of the passengers who entered the cockpit and helped subdue the attacker. Their intervention, combined with the captain’s efforts and the work of the remaining crew, allowed the aircraft to regain enough stability to continue toward an emergency landing.
Machchhar’s condition was later described as stable, while the condition of the suspected attacker was not immediately disclosed.
Investigators now face the task of determining what caused the copilot to attack the captain and whether the incident was an isolated act or part of a wider threat.
For now, officials have not publicly identified a motive. Authorities are examining the suspect’s background and circumstances surrounding the attack while security agencies from several countries work to establish what happened inside the cockpit.
The investigation is expected to examine the suspect’s actions before and during the flight, the circumstances of the confrontation, communications with air traffic control and any possible links to terrorism or other security concerns.
Until those inquiries are completed, officials have cautioned against drawing conclusions about why the attack occurred. What is already clear is that the incident turned an ordinary commercial flight into a serious aviation emergency, with the actions of the injured captain, crew members and passengers helping bring 174 people safely to the ground.