The dramatic Flydubai hijack attempt that sent a passenger aircraft plunging thousands of feet was not only a story of Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar’s extraordinary courage. It was also a story of ordinary passengers stepping forward in an extraordinary emergency, including an Israeli dentist who rushed to save the badly injured Indian pilot.
Flydubai Flight FZ1073 was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday, September 30, with 174 people on board when all hell broke loose inside the cockpit. The co-pilot, identified as an Omani national, attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with a knife and attempted to take control of the aircraft. The plane subsequently plunged roughly 14,000 feet in about 30 seconds.
Despite suffering severe injuries, with his neck and hand slashed open, Machchhar foiled the hijack attempt and managed to open the cockpit door. This allowed passengers and crew members to enter and help overpower the attacker. Among those who rushed forward was Dr Shota Musayev, a dentist travelling on the flight.
Musayev recalled finding the Indian captain covered in blood. According to his account, Machchhar had deep injuries to his head and hands and had lost a dangerous amount of blood. His blood pressure had fallen sharply, and the dentist feared that delaying treatment could cost him his life.
Musayev immediately focused on controlling the bleeding and stabilising the wounded pilot while others dealt with the attacker. He also helped restrain the alleged assailant using available materials, including headphone cords and plastic ties.
At the same time, other passengers fought to secure the cockpit, while off-duty pilots who were travelling as passengers helped stabilise the aircraft. The Boeing 737 was eventually diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely. All 174 people survived.
Machchhar’s survival was the result of several acts of courage coming together at the most critical moment. The Indian captain fought to keep the cockpit accessible, passengers confronted the attacker, off-duty pilots helped recover the aircraft, and Dr Musayev treated the critically bleeding pilot.
The investigation into the attack and the co-pilot’s motive remains ongoing. But one thing is already clear – aboard that flight, courage came not from one person alone, but from a group of passengers and crew who refused to let a terrifying situation become a tragedy.
