Netanyahu and Modi hail Indian flydubai pilot as hero

The leaders of Israel and India hailed Indian pilot Smit Machchhar as a hero for saving passengers after he was stabbed by his colleague in an alleged attempt to crash a flydubai plane on Wednesday.

Passengers on the flight reached Israel safely on Wednesday after customers and crew foiled the co-pilot's attempt to crash the aircraft, Israeli officials said. The struggle began when he stabbed the pilot and sent the jet plunging nearly 14,000 feet (4,267 m) in less than 30 seconds.

Machchhar was covered with blood on the floor when he managed to click the release to open the ⁠cockpit door, a spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Reuters. That allowed passengers and crew to overpower the co-pilot and enable a second pair of flydubai pilots who were on board to land the jet in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

"He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and other nationals," Netanyahu said in a post on X. "All passengers are out of harm's way," he had earlier said in a video statement released by his office.

In a post on X early on Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Machchhar, calling him a "hero."


Reuters