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Flydubai accused pilot ‘prayed a lot’, refused…

By Sohail Khan 1 October 2026, 6:51 pm

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Business News›News›International›Global Trends›Smit Machchhar stabbed mid-air: Flydubai co-pilot accused of attack ‘prayed a lot’, refused to shake women’s hands; feared he could cause another 9/11

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Smit Machchhar stabbed mid-air: Flydubai co-pilot accused of attack ‘prayed a lot’, refused to shake women’s hands; feared he could cause another 9/11
Synopsis

Smit Machchhar stabbed mid-air: The Flydubai Omani co-pilot who attacked Indian captain Smit Machchhar was an extremely religious persona and refused to shake hands with women, a colleague reportedly said. The accused staffer had very strange behaviour and he used to pray a lot. The pilot attacked Smit Machchhar but the brave pilot despite being injured saved the lives of hundreds of passengers on Flydubai flight FZ1073.

In the Flydubai stabbing incident, fresh details about the staffer who attempted to hijack the plane carrying 174 people to Israel by stabbing the lead pilot have emerged. An alarming incident happened on a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv when co-pilot attacked pilot Smit Machchhar, resulting in a mid-air emergency landing. A colleague reportedly said that the accused staffer was known to be a "religious extremist" and refused to shake hands with women. The name of the pilot is not known yet. He was an Omani national who had worked for the airline for less than a year.

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Accused flydubai plane hijacker used to pray a lot

He was “someone characterized by very strange behavior, especially around religious observances that were out of step with his surroundings,” a fellow pilot told Israel’s Channel 16 journalist Yosef Yisrael. “For instance, he used to pray a lot, and would not shake hands with women,” Yisrael said about him on the basis of what pilot told him on the condition of anonymity. The colleague accused flydubai, a sister airline of Emirates, of “betraying” Israel by hiring the pilot. Others had claimed that the pilot appeared desperate to crash the plane and cause another 9/11.

ANI

Midair miracles: Passengers hail Captain Smit Machchhar and Israeli heroes who thwarted attack on flydubai flight

How did the Flydubai accused staff get on the flight?

As of now, it is not known how the Omani national was able to work the flydubai flight to Tel Aviv, which was eventually landed by two off-duty pilots in Saudi Arabia.

Pilots flying into Israel must have passports from countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel. Israel and Oman do not have diplomatic relations. Israeli Transport Minister Miri Regev asked the country’s Civil Aviation Authority to investigate whether the United Arab Emirates breached its aviation agreement with Israel, The Times of Israel reported this on Wednesday.

“This is a clear breach of the agreement,” a transportation ministry source told the Jerusalem Post – calling for Israel’s Security Agency to investigate. “Every pilot that is going to be flying into Israel, we are going to know the pilots’ identities, know who they are, and do some type of security check,” Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, said.

How did Smit Machchhar save hundreds of lives?

Indian captain Captain Smit Machchhar was stabbed by his Omani co-pilot while fighting him in the cockpit. But the brave and courageous fought back and was severely injured. The plane made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia with all the passengers safe. The Flydubai flight FZ1073 was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when it was diverted to Tabuk when the incident happened.

Despite being severely injured, Smit Machchhar managed to unlock the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to intervene. The aircraft subsequently diverted and landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia and he was rushed to a hospital for medical attention.

An Israeli official told the Associated Press that a fight broke out between the pilots and that one of them was armed with a axe. Reuters reported that the co-pilot was believed to have stabbed the captain before cabin crew members entered the cockpit. As of now, Smit Machchhar was airlifted to Abu Dhabi on Thursday for medical treatment.

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