What to know about the terrifying FlyDubai flight bound for Israel

TABUK, Saudi Arabia, Sept 30 – A routine commercial flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv turned into a frightening struggle in the air Wednesday after the two pilots became involved in a violent confrontation inside the cockpit.

The FlyDubai aircraft, carrying about 170 passengers, was forced to make a dramatic emergency diversion to Saudi Arabia after one pilot allegedly attacked the other and attempted to take control of the aircraft in a way that threatened its safety. The plane also experienced a rapid loss of altitude, leaving passengers fearing that the flight could crash.

The situation was brought under control after a passenger and a crew member entered the cockpit and helped overpower the attacker, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The aircraft eventually landed safely in the Saudi city of Tabuk.

The incident came only days before the anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza, adding to concerns surrounding aviation security and the ability of flight crews to prevent a person inside the cockpit from putting an entire aircraft at risk.

Here is what is known so far about FlyDubai flight FZ1073, and the questions that remain unanswered.

A violent confrontation sent the aircraft into a rapid descent

The flight departed Dubai for Tel Aviv with around 170 passengers on board. About two and a half hours into the journey, an emergency situation developed inside the cockpit.

According to Netanyahu, the captain and first officer became involved in a physical confrontation. One pilot was stabbed and the other allegedly attempted to crash the aircraft.

The seriousness of the situation became clear when the aircraft suddenly lost a substantial amount of altitude. Flight information showed the plane dropping from roughly 33,000 feet to about 17,000 feet, or from approximately 10,000 meters to 5,100 meters, in about one minute.

Such a rapid descent would have been alarming for anyone aboard the aircraft. The plane then changed course and flew in the vicinity of the Jordanian border before eventually heading toward Saudi Arabia.

The emergency call was made at about 8:44 a.m. local time. The aircraft ultimately landed in Tabuk roughly an hour later.

A person who listened to communications between the aircraft and air traffic controllers described a chaotic situation, with the aircraft being redirected while passengers could reportedly be heard screaming in the background. The person spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to discuss the incident publicly.

Aviation specialists expressed surprise that the aircraft survived the extreme descent. Reports indicated that much of the rudder on the aircraft's tail was damaged during the incident.

Both pilots were injured and required medical treatment, according to a statement from Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk. Netanyahu also said that Saudi authorities had detained one of the pilots.

A separate aircraft carrying passengers from the original flight later arrived in Israel.

Passengers and crew members helped regain control

One of the most critical moments came when people outside the cockpit intervened.

Netanyahu said he had spoken with a passenger who described how a passenger and a crew member managed to enter the cockpit. Their intervention allowed other members of the crew to assist and regain control of the aircraft.

The prime minister said the pilot who had been attacked opened the cockpit door, creating an opportunity for passengers and crew to confront the attacker.

Cockpit doors are designed specifically to prevent unauthorized access during flight. Their use became a central part of aviation security after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States, when hijackers took control of four passenger aircraft.

The reinforced and locked doors used on modern commercial aircraft are intended to make it extremely difficult for someone outside the cockpit to gain entry while the plane is airborne.

That security system, however, assumes that the people inside the cockpit are able to operate the aircraft safely.

The FlyDubai incident raises a different and much more difficult question: what happens when the danger comes from inside the cockpit itself?

The reported intervention by passengers and crew appears to have played an important role in preventing the situation from becoming even more serious. Details about exactly how the cockpit door was opened and how control of the aircraft was restored have not all been made public.

Questions remain about pilot security and the weapon

The incident has also raised questions about how a pilot could have brought a potentially dangerous object into the cockpit.

It remains unclear what weapon was used during the confrontation, how large it was, or precisely how the attack began.

During an interview with Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity, Netanyahu suggested that the attacker may have struck the other pilot with an axe rather than a knife.

That distinction is important because commercial aircraft routinely carry emergency equipment in the cockpit, including crash axes. Such tools can be used by flight crews during emergencies, including situations in which a window or panel needs to be broken to escape or reach an area affected by fire.

Pilots are normally subject to multiple layers of security screening. They pass through airport security checkpoints and are required to undergo background checks as part of airline employment and aviation security procedures.

Screening can include reviews of criminal and employment histories, physical and mental health assessments, and security or intelligence checks, depending on the country and the airline's requirements.

Israel is known for maintaining particularly strict security procedures for flights entering the country. Passengers traveling to Israel can face additional questioning and baggage inspections beyond ordinary airport security procedures.

It is not clear whether the pilots on the FlyDubai flight were subjected to the same level of screening used for passengers traveling into Israel, or whether the reported weapon was an item normally permitted in a cockpit because of its emergency function.

That distinction is likely to be an important part of any investigation into the incident.

There have been only a small number of cases in which a member of a flight crew has deliberately or allegedly attempted to bring down an aircraft.

One of the most widely known examples occurred in 2015, when the co-pilot of Germanwings Flight 9525 locked the captain out of the cockpit and deliberately flew the aircraft into a mountainside in the French Alps. All 150 people aboard were killed.

Earlier crashes have involved cockpit struggles

The FlyDubai incident also recalls previous aviation disasters in which investigators examined whether a struggle or deliberate action by a pilot contributed to a crash.

EgyptAir Flight 990 crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, on Oct. 31, 1999. All 217 people aboard were killed.

The National Transportation Safety Board investigated the crash and concluded that the aircraft's final movements were not explained by a mechanical failure. In its final report, adopted in 2002, the NTSB said the evidence pointed to conflicting control inputs from the relief first officer and the captain.

Investigators found that the first officer was making nose-down control inputs while the captain was attempting to raise the aircraft's nose.

The cockpit voice recorder also captured the first officer making a religious reference shortly before the aircraft went down, while the captain repeatedly attempted to pull the plane upward.

The NTSB ultimately determined that the crash resulted from pilot inputs, including opposing commands by the two flight crew members.

That case remains one of the examples frequently examined when considering the risks associated with conflict between flight crew members.

The Germanwings crash presented a different set of circumstances, involving a co-pilot who intentionally prevented the captain from re-entering the cockpit. Together, such cases have contributed to continuing discussions within the aviation industry about pilot screening, cockpit access and procedures for dealing with incapacitated or dangerous crew members.

What investigators still need to determine

Despite the dramatic events aboard the FlyDubai aircraft, many important details remain unclear.

Investigators will need to establish exactly what happened inside the cockpit, why the confrontation began, what object was used in the attack, and whether the reported attempt to crash the aircraft was deliberate.

They will also need to examine how the aircraft lost altitude so rapidly, what damage occurred to the plane during the descent, and how the crew managed to stabilize it before the emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

Another major issue will be the security procedures that applied to the pilots before they boarded the aircraft. Determining how any weapon or emergency tool was accessed could help explain whether existing procedures worked as intended or whether there was a security gap.

The condition and actions of both pilots will also be relevant to the investigation. Both reportedly required hospital treatment, while Saudi authorities detained one of them, according to Netanyahu.

For passengers, however, the most immediate concern was simply surviving a flight that appeared to be spiraling out of control.

The aircraft eventually reached the ground safely in Tabuk, and passengers were able to continue their journey to Israel. But the episode has left aviation authorities with a serious set of questions about what safeguards can protect passengers when an emergency originates not from outside the cockpit, but from within it.

Until investigators establish the full sequence of events, it remains too early to draw conclusions about the motive behind the confrontation or whether existing aviation security procedures failed. What is clear is that the reported struggle created an extraordinary threat aboard a commercial aircraft and that the intervention of crew members and a passenger became a crucial part of bringing the flight safely back under control.