Captain Smit Machchhar, who fought off his knife-wielding co-pilot during a mid-flight attack, has spoken publicly for the first time. The pilot, who helped save all 180 people on board the Flydubai plane, said from his hospital bed that he was never going to "let others die".
Attack and rescue
Machchhar was left covered in his own blood after being stabbed by his co-pilot during the flight. Israeli officials claim the co-pilot was trying to crash the plane after steering the jet into a 700mph nosedive. Despite his injuries, Machchhar managed to open the cockpit door, allowing others to come in and help him.
Passengers stormed into the cockpit and helped overpower the attacker, saving everyone on board from almost certain doom. The captain has now described the drama to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a video call from his hospital bed in Saudi Arabia.
Captain's account
Machchhar said: "I was lying on the floor injured but I told myself to go for one last push to open the door from inside. Others came in and also played a role [in controlling the situation]."
He added: "I was of course fighting for my own life but at the same time I knew I was not going to let others die." Modi told the pilot he potentially saved hundreds of lives through his "courage, patience and quick decision-making".
International reaction
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also hailed him a "true hero" as the Flydubai plane was full of mainly Israeli passengers. He told Fox News on Thursday: "We could be sitting today in a 9/11 tragedy, with bodies scattered in the desert."
Machchhar continued: "I am not looking at this wound like a wound because that would make my recovery even more difficult. 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."
Investigation continues
The attacker was arrested in Saudi Arabia and is still being questioned. Israeli sources say they think he may have been an Omani religious extremist who underwent "Islamist radical indoctrination". According to Israel's Channel 16 foreign editor and news anchor Yosef Yisrael, the suspect was known to refuse to shake hands with women and would pray several times a day.
Yisrael added that he was told the suspect "was someone characterised by very strange behaviour, especially around religious observances". Israel is continuing to investigate how a suspected terrorist was able to bring a knife on board a plane and be allowed to fly an Israeli-bound flight. Flydubai has grounded all flights to and from Israel as investigations continue.
