A commercial flight that was flying from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates to Israel was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia due to an attack by one of the pilots on his colleague. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, announced that this incident is being investigated as a possible terrorist attack on Israeli passengers.
Details of the Attack and Emergency Landing
The flydubai flight was diverted towards Saudi Arabia while passing over Jordanian airspace and sent out three emergency signals, one of which indicated the possibility of illegal interference. The flight rapidly descended at a speed of about 16,000 feet in two minutes and landed at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia.
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Netanyahu stated that one of the flydubai pilots assaulted his colleague and appeared to intend to crash the plane. He added that one of the passengers managed to enter the cockpit and "neutralize" the attacking pilot with the help of a crew member.
Reactions and Consequences
Netanyahu described the incident as "a very serious security event" and thanked the passengers and crew who helped stop the attack, praising them for their bravery and intelligence. Other Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Israel Katz, described the incident as a possible terrorist attack.
An Israeli official identified the attacker as a citizen of Oman. According to reports, the Boeing 737 aircraft, which had between 160 to 180 passengers, sent out a general emergency signal about two and a half hours after leaving Dubai.
A passenger named Miriam Shira Ohayon said about the incident that the plane was "almost out of control" and that during the attack, the pilot was in serious danger. She stated that "the co-pilot attempted to kill the pilot and effectively executed a suicide attack on the plane."
After sending the initial emergency signal, the flight landed at 9:45 local time at Tabuk Airport, and both pilots were taken to the hospital.
The second flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv arrived at its destination without incident. Initially, the flight tracker Flightradar24 showed that flight FZ1081 was diverted towards the UAE, but it was later confirmed that it was heading towards Israel and arrived in Tel Aviv on Wednesday afternoon.
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