Wounded flydubai pilot opens cockpit, saves 174 passengers

The co-pilot of a flydubai aircraft attacked the captain with a knife in the cockpit — within less than 30 seconds, the airliner lost nearly 4,300 metres of altitude. Despite severe injuries, the captain managed to press the mechanism that opens the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew members to subdue the attacker and safely land the plane in the Saudi city of Tabuk.

Passengers subdue the attacker

A group of passengers eventually overpowered the attacker. Among them was Shota Musaev, an Israeli dentist of Georgian descent, who, as the only doctor on board, later gave the captain first aid.

The captain had severely bleeding wounds to his head and arms. Musaev stopped the bleeding and helped stabilise his condition — after receiving treatment, the pilot's condition temporarily improved, but worsened again during landing.

Pilot undergoes surgery

Following the incident in Tabuk, the injured pilot underwent surgery, India's Hindustan Times reported. India's embassy in Saudi Arabia later said his condition was stable.

The plane was ultimately landed by two relief flydubai pilots who were on board in case the diversion caused the flight to run long enough for the main crew to exceed their permitted flying hours. The identities of the two pilots have not yet been disclosed: according to Britain's The Guardian, one of them was British, while the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom reported that the pair included a Russian and a Ukrainian — though Russian authorities later flatly denied that a Russian citizen had been on board.

Pilot hailed as a hero

The captain's courage has already been praised by the leaders of Israel and India. “He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and nationals of other countries,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on X. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the pilot on X on Thursday morning, calling him a “hero.”

Israeli President Isaac Herzog intends to award one of the country's highest civilian honours to four Israeli passengers who subdued the attacker. “Facing the gravest danger and despite severe injuries, he showed tremendous courage and unwavering resolve to protect the lives of others. His bravery helped save hundreds of lives and prevent a major tragedy,” Modi said.

According to Reuters, the co-pilot who carried out the attack is an Omani national and is now being questioned by Saudi authorities.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz