In brief
A Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv was rocked by a cockpit stabbing, with the attacker trying to disable the aircraft. Passengers quickly intervened, and Yaniv Hayun took the controls after the assailant was restrained. The plane landed at Tabuk Airport before passengers were flown to Tel Aviv. Israeli leaders praised the passenger's heroics, while the attacker remains in custody. The incident is being investigated as an attempted terror attack.
Passengers aboard a Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv claimed they subdued a pilot after he stabbed his colleague and tried to disable the aircraft. The 17,000‑foot plunge shocked everyone on board, but one passenger, Yaniv Hayun, reacted quick.
Hayun said he saw the attacker in the cockpit, holding the controls, and “grabbed the attacker, put him in a chokehold, and pulled him out.” He then rushed back in, “started pulling the controls” and helped elicit a return of flight control.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the passenger and the two other Israelis who helped restrain the assailant, calling them heroes.
The plane finally landed at Tabuk Airport, Saudi Arabia, before passengers were flown to Ben Gurion International Airport. The stabbed pilot, Captain Smit Machchhar, was taken to hospital and is in stable condition.
The attacker has been arrested and is being questioned by Saudi authorities. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz described it as an attempted jihadist terror attack.
