Captain Smit Machchhar recounted a cockpit assault and his fight to survive in his first television interview. He spoke from a UAE hospital bed.
The flydubai pilot appeared bandaged on his head and one hand, with glasses perched on his nose. Sky News Arabia shared interview excerpts on October 17, 2026; it had promoted the exclusive ahead of coverage dated October 16–17. Machchhar also gave a separate interview to The National.
He was 38 when he described the attack on Flight FZ1073. The plane was carrying 174 people from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30, 2026, when the assault began in Jordanian airspace.
The captain said the episode left him drifting in and out of consciousness, with passengers’ safety on his mind. A colleague took control of the aircraft as the cockpit struggle spilled into the cabin.
A blow from behind turned the cockpit into a fight for control
Machchhar said the assault came about two hours into the flight. The co-pilot, 29-year-old Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, had said he wanted to pray and asked another captain to leave the cockpit.
Machchhar said he saw nothing unusual in that request. Pilots could hand over controls during rest periods, he said, and praying during that time was permitted. He tried not to look at his colleague while he prayed in the cramped cockpit.
Then Machchhar felt a hard strike at the back of his head. He had been checking his computer for landing timings and fuel, and initially thought a piece of the aircraft ceiling had come loose.
He said he started thinking about possible damage to the aircraft before realizing he was under attack. The co-pilot was striking him with an emergency axe from behind his seat.
“He kept on hitting,” Machchhar said.
His vision narrowed within seconds, he said, to “like few inches.” He unbuckled, turned around and tried to block the blows, injuring his hand in the process. Doctors later explained the effect on his vision, he said.
Machchhar described a moment when he told himself, “Smit, do something. You can't die like this.” He said he was trying to get past the experience, but had not accepted that he would die.
A second pilot and passengers took over as the aircraft dived
Machchhar said he yelled the other captain’s name and reached for the switch to open the cockpit door. He wanted help from the captain who was expected to operate the return flight.
The door opened, but shut again after the attacker threatened to hit people outside, Machchhar said. By then, he felt blood and energy draining away and could barely remain conscious.
He heard the engine sounds drop, then felt the aircraft dive. His next memory was of the cockpit door open and himself lying face down between the cockpit and galley, while people screamed and panic spread through the cabin.
“When the door was open, it was a completely different scene,” Machchhar said. “I remember being face down, and of course, the panic which was there, the screaming which was there.”
Two relief pilots took control and diverted the aircraft. The plane made an emergency landing at Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, north-western Saudi Arabia.
Machchhar praised the colleague who took the controls and helped save the aircraft. He said that colleague’s action was something he would “keep with me till I die.”
The attorney general said the co-pilot planned an airport attack
Findings released by the Emirati attorney general said al-Hammami intended to use the plane in a suicide attack on the passenger terminal at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. The findings said he was inspired by the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York.
The co-pilot claimed he acted alone, while investigators continued working to verify that account. The investigation remained ongoing, and al-Hammami was taken into custody.
The account said the other pilot entered the flight deck after seeing the cockpit door open and close “in an unusual manner.” He and another crew member, passengers and pilots then subdued the attacker and regained control. The aircraft plunged during the struggle.
Herzog named five passengers for Israel’s civilian heroism award
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on Thursday, October 1, 2026, that he would recommend five Israeli citizens for the country’s highest civilian award for heroism. The group included plumber Yaniv Hayoun, dentist Shota Musayev, Tzvika Manes, his wife Tali Manes, and Asaf Rajuan.
Tali Manes heard a commotion, alerted other passengers and summoned two off-duty pilots sitting at the back of the cabin. Tzvika Manes, Hayoun and Rajuan forced the cockpit door after Machchhar managed to unlatch it, then helped tackle the attacker.
Hayoun told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a televised conversation on Wednesday that, as others subdued the co-pilot, he “grabbed the controls and started pulling back the handles.” Tzvika Manes said it took roughly 20 to 25 minutes to restrain the co-pilot, using corded headphones from the aircraft’s entertainment system.
Musayev treated Machchhar for serious head wounds and cuts to his fingers. Rajuan described feeling helpless in midair, then acting on instinct to protect families, people and children.
Herzog said the passengers had risked themselves to prevent a disaster. He also thanked Machchhar and the reserve pilots, calling the captain “A hero to India, Israel and the world.” The Presidential Award for Civilian Heroism was established after the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023.
Machchhar is recovering in Abu Dhabi after treatment in Saudi Arabia
Machchhar received initial treatment at a hospital in Tabuk before transferring to Abu Dhabi, where he is recovering. The Indian Embassy said on October 6 that he was making “steady progress” and “regaining his health.”
He became emotional when asked whom he called first after the incident: his two-year-old son. Machchhar also said he would remember the determination of everyone on board to survive.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump have praised his courage. The captain’s first television account now puts his own recollection alongside the actions of the pilots and passengers who helped bring the flight down safely.
