Flydubai flight lands in Saudi Arabia after cockpit altercation
Flydubai said all passengers were safe after FZ1073 diverted to Tabuk. Saudi airport officials said both pilots were hospitalised; the cause of the altercation remains unconfirmed.
Flydubai flight FZ1073, travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv, landed at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after sending emergency signals. The airline said an altercation had occurred on the flight deck and all passengers were safe and accounted for.
Saudi airport officials said the captain and first officer were hospitalised with injuries. Flydubai said crew members travelling on board secured the aircraft.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alleged that one pilot stabbed the other and tried to crash the plane. Israel’s defence minister described the incident as an attempted terror attack. Neither an attempted hijacking nor those claims about the pilot’s actions have been officially confirmed in the supplied accounts.
Flight-tracking data cited by Al Jazeera indicated the aircraft descended more than 14,000 feet in under 30 seconds. The reported sequence also included emergency codes for a general emergency and unlawful interference.
Passenger accounts cited by Al Jazeera said some passengers entered the cockpit after the aircraft began to descend. The details of what happened there, including the passengers’ role, have not been independently established in the available reporting.
Al Jazeera reported that a separate claim that another Flydubai flight had turned back was erroneous; that aircraft continued towards Tel Aviv without disruption.
