An Omani co‑pilot brandished a knife and tried to take control of a flydubai 737 departing Dubai for Tel Aviv on Wednesday morning; the cockpit plunged 14,000 feet within 30 seconds, but the captain’s desperate struggle and the crew’s swift intervention stopped the aircraft from plummeting into the desert.
Crew members and passengers surged into the cockpit, wrestled the knife‑wielding co‑pilot to the floor, and the second pilot aboard regained control, steering the jet to a rough landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
The captain sustained a deep laceration to his chest and was rushed to a hospital in Tabuk, where he lay on a bed later that evening.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, hearing the captain’s story via a video link, praised his self‑lessness, saying, "I care about lives, not my own," and added that the incident had elevated the honor of 140 crore Indians.
Investigators will now examine cockpit security protocols and the co‑pilot’s background, while the airline is reviewing crew training procedures.