A Flydubai flight carrying more than 170 Israeli passengers from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Tabuk Airport in northeastern Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after a violent confrontation broke out between the plane’s pilots, one of whom was stabbed.
The Boeing 737, operating as flight FZ1073, left Dubai International Airport early in the day and was roughly two hours into its journey when it transmitted an emergency code, according to flight tracking site Flightradar24. The code briefly switched to one used to signal a hijacking before reverting to a general emergency signal.
During the incident, the plane dropped 17,400 feet in just over two minutes. Passengers told Israel’s Channel 12 by phone that they heard shouting from the forward cabin as the aircraft dipped steeply before the emergency landing.
Flydubai, which is owned by the Emirati government, confirmed the incident took place but has not released further detail.
Israeli officials described the episode as a “jihadist terrorist attack” and said it appeared aimed at crashing the aircraft with everyone on board. Israeli fighter jets were scrambled after the emergency signal was sent, a military spokesperson said.
An Israeli passenger told journalists that crew members asked passengers for help, and that travelers then moved to tackle one of the pilots and restrain him.
A female passenger speaking to Israel Hayom described the moments when people on board realized the plane was descending rapidly as “very stressful.”
“We understood the pilots lost control,” she said, recalling screams of terror among passengers.
She said one pilot suffered serious stab wounds before the attacker could be pulled away from the flight deck.
“There are people here with shirts covered in blood,” she said. “Now we are fine and want to return home.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saudi Arabia had arrested the pilot who stabbed his colleague and appeared to attempt to crash the plane. Netanyahu said passengers and crew subdued the attacker, preventing what he called a “major disaster.”
