Indian captain defeats co-pilot in flydubai cockpit attack
Captain Smit Machchhar fought off his co-pilot and opened the cockpit door, letting passengers restrain him.
An Indian captain fought off a co-pilot who tried to crash a flydubai flight on Wednesday. Captain Smit Machchhar was stabbed when his Omani co-pilot attacked him in the cockpit.
The plane went into a steep dive. Despite his wounds, Machchhar opened the cockpit door.
Passengers rushed in and held the attacker down. The Boeing 737 landed in Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
The co-pilot was arrested and is being questioned. Machchhar told India's prime minister: 'I was fighting for my life'.
He said if he did not fight back, passengers would die. He is recovering in Abu Dhabi.
- 182 people
- Passengers on board
- Mumbai, India
- Captain's origin
- Wednesday
- Attack date
- Tabuk, northwestern Saudi Arabia
- Emergency landing site
Why it mattersA co-pilot's attack on an active flight demonstrates a critical vulnerability in aircraft security and the extraordinary actions required to prevent disaster.
AustraliaNo direct Australian impact, but the incident highlights a security vulnerability in global aviation that affects Australian travellers and airlines.
Corroborated bytheguardian.com
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 1 h ago
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