JERUSALEM: Israeli officials said passengers subdued a co-pilot who stabbed the captain and tried to crash a flydubai flight on Wednesday. Other pilots landed the Dubai–Tel Aviv aircraft safely in Saudi Arabia.
Flight FZ1073 carried more than 170 Israelis. After eight hours on the ground, passengers left for Israel aboard a replacement flydubai aircraft.
However, flydubai said the reasons for the incident remained unknown and cautioned against speculation. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said Saudi authorities arrested the co-pilot after landing and would question him.
An Israeli official identified the suspect as an Omani national. Netanyahu quoted a passenger who said people entered the cockpit with a crew member after the aircraft began diving.
According to that account, they found the co-pilot trying to sabotage its systems. Meanwhile, a Netanyahu spokesperson told Reuters that the wounded captain released the cockpit door while lying on the floor.
Read: Saudi Arabia Denies Israeli Rescue Flights, Sources Say
A second set of pilots, aboard to replace the original crew, then took control and landed. Flightradar24 data showed the aircraft descended nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds before its first emergency signal on Wednesday morning.
Those readings establish the rapid descent, but do not explain its cause. “All passengers are out of harm’s way,” Netanyahu said in a video statement.
He also ordered tighter security on Israeli and non-Israeli airlines flying into Israel. His announcement did not specify the measures. Separately, Israel’s Transport Ministry announced a joint investigation with the defence establishment.
Israeli officials said passengers subdued a co-pilot accused of trying to crash a flydubai aircraft, while the airline said the reasons remained unknown.
