A suspected hijacking of a Tel Aviv-bound plane is being treated as a fully-fledged terrorist attack by the Israeli government after the jet's pilot was "stabbed" by his co-pilot. Israeli airspace was shut down and fighter jets were scrambled after the flight issued a squawk code of 7500, which signals unlawful interference, around 90 minutes after take-off from Dubai. It later reverted back to 7700, indicating a general emergency.
Passengers describe terror on board
Passengers on board FlyDubai flight FZ1073 said they feared they would die as they heard screams and saw blood during the fight. The plane appeared to nosedive before returning back to Saudi Arabia, where it landed in Tabuk, a civilian and military base.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz held an urgent meeting to discuss the situation and scrambled warplanes amid fears a plane carrying dozens of its citizens had been hijacked. The distress calls were issued after the pilot and the co-pilot got into a 'violent' altercation, local media reported. Once the attack began, several crew members and passengers managed to break through the cockpit door and subdue the attacker.
Co-pilot questioned over intentions
According to one senior official, the co-pilot is currently being questioned, and indications are mounting that he intended to take control of the plane and crash it with the passengers on board, local media reported. It comes after Netanyahu had warned in recent days of unspecified, escalated security threats. Israel has not experienced a hijacking in decades but maintains some of the strictest airport security in the world.
FlyDubai confirmed the flight was diverted to Saudi Arabia because of a physical altercation between the pilots. An investigation has been launched into the incident, with authorities questioning crew and inspecting the aircraft. The airline is set to send another aircraft to Saudi Arabia to bring the passengers back to Tel Aviv. Commercial flights have flown between Israel and the United Arab Emirates since the countries normalised ties in 2020.
Airline confirms incident
A FlyDubai spokesperson told the Daily Mail: "FlyDubai can confirm that flight FZ 1073 operating from Dubai International (DXB) to Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) on September 30 experienced an incident while en route. The aircraft has landed safely in Tabuk Airport (TUU) and all passengers are safe and accounted for. The safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew remain our highest priority. Our teams are working closely with the relevant authorities. Further updates will be issued as additional confirmed details become available."
