The hero Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar, who found himself at the centre of a bloodied cockpit drama high in the skies on Wednesday, was on another plane a day later. He was being airlifted to Abu Dhabi for medical treatment.
Machchhar was stabbed by his co-pilot inside the cockpit aboard flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv. The co-pilot apparently wanted to crash the plane.
The Indian pilot was covered with blood on the floor when he managed to click the release to open the cockpit door, Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu spokesperson told Reuters. That allowed passengers and crew to overpower the co-pilot and enable a second pair of flydubai pilots who were on board to land the jet in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.Indian authorities in Saudi Arabia said Machchhar is receiving necessary medical attention in a hospital in the northwestern city of Tabuk and they are in touch with his family and Saudi authorities to extend all possible help. He is reported to be stable, the Indian embassy in Saudi Arabia said in a post on X.
Passengers described rushing the cockpit after the plane suddenly plummeted, losing around 17,000 feet of altitude in the span of a minute, according to the Flightradar24 website.
Airline flydubai said all of the passengers -- of whom 166 out of 174 were Israeli, according to media reports -- were safe.
Israeli officials called the incident "an attempted terrorist attack" while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US broadcaster Fox News it was "too early" to say who was behind the altercation and praised those who prevented a crash.
"During the flight, as they approached the country, one of the pilots stabbed the other pilot, and apparently tried to crash the plane with everyone on board," Netanyahu said in a video message.
"Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker - preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster," Netanyahu said in a statement, hailing him as a "true hero".
Back home, the Gujarat government announced that Smit Machchhar, will be awarded the 'Visisht Gujarat Garima Award' for his bravery.
"The courage of Captain Smit Machchhar, the pilot of the flight headed to Israel, is being saluted by the entire world today. Despite being drenched in blood due to the attack, he displayed indomitable bravery to save the lives of 174 passengers-a feat that is profoundly inspiring and commendable," Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said in a post on X.
"This valiant son of Gujarat has brought glory to the state of Gujarat and the nation across the globe through his heroism. The Gujarati spirit flowing in his veins fills us all with immense pride," he further said.
To honour his extraordinary act of bravery and humanity, the state will bestow the 'Visisht Gujarat Garima Award' upon Captain Smit Machchhar, Patel said.
Machchhar, who is in his 30s, has "over 13 years of commercial flying experience on the Boeing 737 fleet" and has flown for flydubai since 2022, according to his LinkedIn profile. He previously worked for the Indian airline SpiceJet.
Elaborating about his route into flying in a podcast in 2025, he said he caught the "aviation bug" after attending a seminar while studying management to help his family's textile business.
Machchhar described his first commercial flight as "scary" due to the responsibility it came with, but said he learnt to cope with the pressure.
