Tali Manes, 46, stood outside the bathroom of flydubai flight FD‑123, waiting for her five‑year‑old daughter when she heard bangs and shouts from the closed cockpit door at 9:23 am Dubai time. She asked a backup pilot seated nearby to investigate, and the two opened the door to find the cockpit in chaos, the backup pilot wielding a knife and assaulting Captain Smit Machchhar. The captain, who had slipped to the floor after the attack, had managed to pry the door open, alerting the passengers inside.
Yaniv Hayoun, a plumber, and Shota Musaev, a dentist, followed Manes and her husband Tzvika into the cockpit. As they approached, the aircraft lurched into a steep dive, but the passengers seized the co‑pilot, held him in a chokehold, and restrained the attacker with a headset strap and rope. The co‑pilot was able to maintain the controls for a few seconds before the backup pilot regained the aircraft.
The plane, struggling to maintain altitude, was guided toward Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, where a pilot, after persuading passengers to allow him to pass the cockpit door, steered the nearly rudderless aircraft to a safe landing at approximately 9:45 am. The first video of the incident, captured by a passenger, was time‑stamped 52 minutes before the intended arrival in Tel Aviv.
Authorities in Dubai and Tel Aviv have been notified and are expecting a full investigation into the unauthorized use of a knife aboard the aircraft. The incident underscores the threat of in‑flight disruptions and the critical role of passenger vigilance.
Passengers like Tali Manes say the moment the attack began, her fury and quick action saved the lives of all on board. Her daughter, still asleep in the front rows, later received a hug from her mother, a small comfort amid the chaos.
tags: ["flydubai", "air safety", "mid-air hijack", "Tabuk landing", "passenger intervention"]