‘They saved many lives’: Netanyahu praises passengers, confirms FlyDubai pilot arrested after attack

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has revealed that Saudi Arabia arrested a FlyDubai pilot accused of stabbing another pilot and apparently trying to crash the aircraft carrying Israeli passengers.

In his first response to the incident, Netanyahu said passengers and crew members managed to overpower the attacker and prevent what he described as a “major disaster”.

“I salute these heroes who showed exceptional resourcefulness and courage. They saved many lives and prevented a major disaster,” Netanyahu said on Wednesday.

Screams, blood and a struggle inside the aircraft

The comments came after a violent confrontation between the pilots forced the Dubai-Tel Aviv flight to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

An Israeli official said one of the pilots was armed with a knife when the fight broke out in the cockpit. The captain and first officer were both injured and taken to hospital, according to Saudi authorities.

Video footage showed two men on the floor of the aircraft with bloody wounds. Other people appeared to be providing medical assistance while passengers guarded the cockpit. In one video, a person could be heard saying in Hebrew, “We are guarding the pilot.”

Passengers also described hearing screams and shouting before the aircraft suddenly lost altitude.

Passengers who spoke to Israel’s Channel 12 similarly reported hearing an altercation near the front of the aircraft and experiencing a steep descent.

Flight-tracking data showed the aircraft dropping from around 33,000 feet to 17,000 feet in roughly a minute before making an erratic turn near the Jordanian border. It later landed safely at Tabuk.

The motive behind the confrontation remains unclear, and the investigation is ongoing.

FlyDubai confirmed that flight FZ1073 had experienced an “incident” and landed safely in Tabuk. The airline said its teams were working with the relevant authorities.

The incident initially triggered fears of a hijacking and prompted Israel to scramble fighter jets. Netanyahu’s office later said the situation was under control and that efforts were underway to bring the passengers home.

The investigation is now focused on what happened during the cockpit confrontation and what caused the aircraft’s sudden descent.

With AP inputs