Highlights
- Captain Smit Machchhar was stabbed during a flight to Tel Aviv
- He opened the cockpit door while lying injured on the floor
- Passengers and crew helped overpower the co-pilot
- The aircraft plunged thousands of feet before control was regained
INDIAN pilot Smit Machchhar has described how he made a final effort to open the cockpit door after being attacked by his co-pilot on a flydubai flight, allowing passengers and crew to enter and help stop the assault.
Machchhar, who was injured in Wednesday’s (30) incident, recounted the ordeal during a video call with prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday (2).
Speaking from a hospital bed in Abu Dhabi, the captain said he realised the aircraft was rapidly losing altitude while he was on the cockpit floor.
“I knew that the aircraft was going down ... I had fallen to the ground. I told myself that the door is right there, just open it,” he said.“I managed to do it, and people entered.
”The Boeing 737 was flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the incident happened. Saudi authorities said an initial investigation found that the co-pilot had assaulted Machchhar before the aircraft diverted to Tabuk in north-western Saudi Arabia.
UAE authorities have also opened an investigation.
‘I was not going to let others die’
Machchhar told Modi that he was still being attacked when he realised he had to act.“I was lying on the floor injured, but I told myself to go for one last push to open the door from inside,” he said.
“Others came in and also played a role [in controlling the situation]. I was of course fighting for my own life, but at the same time I knew I was not going to let others die."
Opening the cockpit door allowed passengers and crew members to enter and overpower the co-pilot. A second pair of flydubai pilots then helped take control of the aircraft before it made an emergency landing in Tabuk.
Reports have differed over some details of the incident, including the exact sequence of events inside the cockpit. Investigations by authorities in Saudi Arabia and the UAE are continuing.
‘I knew God saved me’
Machchhar, who has been a captain for 11 years and has flown for 17 years, became emotional during the conversation with Modi.“I know God saved me,” he told the prime minister.
He also said he recited a Hindu prayer to Hanuman during the ordeal.
Modi praised Machchhar's courage and quick decision-making, saying his actions had helped save lives. The pilot was shown with bandages on his head and hands and a tube in his nose during the call.
Machchhar was initially taken to hospital in Tabuk before being transferred to Abu Dhabi. India's embassy in the UAE said on Thursday (1) that he was in good health and recovering.
‘It will take time’
Despite his injuries, Machchhar said he was focused on recovering.“I am not looking at this wound like a wound because that would make my recovery even more difficult,” he said.
“I am looking at it as a journey which is slowly going on and will take time, but I am confident that the recovery will be there and I will become fit and healthy again.”
The incident left the flight in a rapid descent before control was restored. All passengers were able to leave the aircraft safely after it landed in Saudi Arabia.
