The Flydubai captain who was stabbed by his copilot has described how he fought to save the airplane with nearly 180 passengers.
“Even with my eyes closed, I know exactly what is happening in the cockpit. When I was lying on the floor, I could sense the aircraft was going down,” Smit Machchhar told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Hindi in a video published Friday.
On Wednesday, Flydubai Flight 1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv suddenly dropped more than 15,000 feet before passengers and crew members subdued the first officer, and the plane safely diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
“I knew for a fact that if I could just give the door one last push, that was the only chance, and even then, I was taking a beating,” Machchhar said on a video call from the hospital, which was widely translated into English.
“I just managed to open it. Everyone else arrived, and they all played their part too,” he added.
“I was acting to save my own life, of course, but at the same time, I knew I couldn’t let everyone else die.”
After landing, the other pilot was arrested, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. He also called Machchhar a “true hero.”
Machchhar said he has been a pilot for 17 years and a captain for the last 11 years. His LinkedIn profile shows he began his career at SpiceJet, an Indian budget airline, before joining Flydubai four years ago.
The passengers who helped regain control of the airplane — Yaniv Hayun, Or Pardilov, Shota Musayev, and his wife Sigalit — met with Netanyahu on Thursday. They described tying the first officer with a headphone cable.
“I salute these heroes, who displayed exceptional resourcefulness and courage,” Netanyahu said. “They saved many lives. They prevented a huge disaster.”
