Friends of the pilot attacked with an axe as he flew 182 people to Tel Aviv have described being 'broken' and in 'disbelief' when they heard the news.
A FlyDubai co-pilot, Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, is alleged to have attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with an axe before attempting to seize control of the plane. The flight, carrying 182 people, was nearly crashed before passengers and others intervened.
Captain's account of the attack
Captain Machchhar described how he received blows to the back of his head, "one after the other". The captain, who was badly injured, has said he used his remaining energy while being stabbed to unlock the cockpit door, allowing people who had noticed alarmingly unusual sounds to come in, tackle the co-pilot and stabilise the plane.
Two passengers reportedly helped take control of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft and land it. Passenger Almog Itali said one of them was a British pilot and that they "entered (the cockpit) and pulled the aircraft up, pulled the yoke, stabilised the plane and landed us in Saudi Arabia". Fighter jets were scrambled to escort the aircraft during its emergency landing.
Passenger hailed as hero
Yaniv Hayoun was one of the passengers labelled a "hero" by Israeli Prime Minister after he overpowered the knifeman who allegedly stabbed the pilot of the plane. He revealed that he had learned how to land the jet after watching a TV show, Air Crash Investigation.
Yaniv told Benjamin Netanyahu: "We pinned him down to keep him secure and then I jumped into it (the cockpit) and pulled the controls." Netanyahu asked how he knew to pull in a backwards motion, to which Yaniv said: "I watch Air Crash Investigations Mr Prime Minister."
Pilot praised as 'true hero'
Captain Machchhar was praised as a "true hero" by the Israeli prime minister, who said he was "amazed" by Captain Machchhar's "courage and coolness of judgement under impossible conditions". Mr Netanyahu said the pilot had "saved so many souls" during the incident.
Captain Dhaval Patel, a fellow pilot who trained alongside Machchhar in New Zealand, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that he and Machchhar have known each other for "close to two decades" according to PEOPLE. "I saw the first glimpse, and I was just not ready to believe it was Captain Smit," he said of the moment he learned of the attack. "When it happens to the person you know, the person you love, it breaks you."
"I vividly remember him helping colleagues and peers, educating them on the concepts of aviation with so much clarity and knowledge," he continued. "And I had the privilege of getting my fourth stripe on becoming a captain by his hand."
Mr Netanyahu claimed the co-pilot had undergone "Islamist radicalisation", but provided no evidence.
In a phone call with Mr Netanyahu, Captain Machchhar described the terrifying attack in more detail. He said: "It was a normal flight. The co-pilot wanted to pray, which a lot of locals do. It's not out of the ordinary."
"While he was praying, out of respect, I was looking at the front and not at the back [of the cockpit]. After about four or five minutes, there was a big blow to the back of my head. My first thought was that there was catastrophic damage to the aircraft and something is not right."
"But after that, the blows kept coming, one after the other. That's when I realised it wasn't the aircraft. It was the other guy who was in the cockpit with me. I did try to stop him but because of his initial blows, my vision was almost like nothing. I was completely blurred out and, at that point, the next feeling that I had was that the aircraft was sharply going down."
"My memory is still in bits and pieces but this is what I remember. I did manage to open the door once but I think he shut it back. I was lying down on the cockpit floor and I felt the aircraft and the whooshing sound and people screaming. I had one last fight left in me."
"Call it personal or for the people, but I knew that if I didn't [open the door], I was going to die. That's when I pushed against everything I had and opened the door. Thankfully, people were waiting to pounce back and take over control. The rest is what you know, sir."
UAE officials have described the incident as "terrorist" in a statement that cited the UAE attorney general.
