Captain Smit Machchhar fought off his Omani co-pilot during an attempted hijacking of flydubai Flight 1073 on September 30, 2026. The flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv plunged 17,000 feet over Saudi Arabia before passengers and crew subdued the attacker and landed safely in Tabuk.
Captain Smit Machchhar Recounts the Cockpit Attack
A heavy blow struck the back of Captain Smit Machchhar’s head during what was a normal flight four or five minutes after his Omani co-pilot asked for a moment to pray. Machchhar, an Indian national with 17 years of flying experience, had kept his eyes forward out of respect.
“Suddenly…after about four-five minutes, there was a big blow to the back of my head.”
Machchhar recalled that the blows kept coming, one after another, leaving his vision almost completely gone. As he felt the plane sharply going down, he tried to open the cockpit door, but the co-pilot slammed it shut again.
Passengers and Crew Restrain the Assailant Over Saudi Arabia
The aircraft plummeted from its cruising altitude of about 34,000 feet down to 17,000 feet in less than two minutes according to flight trackers and passenger accounts. The flight was carrying about 150 Israeli passengers alongside other travelers. Dalia Shpigel, a passenger on board, recounted hearing terrible screams before three to five individuals burst into the cockpit to subdue the assailant and administer first aid to the injured pilot, while noting that the primary fear was an actual crash. Upon hearing shouts that someone had suffered a stabbing, Yaniv Hayoun, a plumber on the plane, hurried toward the cockpit area, only to be knocked down to the ground as the aircraft underwent severe jolts as equipment was being smashed inside.
“At some stage I was able to get up when the plane balanced out a little. Then I went to the door. A crew member was standing there, apparently a pilot, as he had on a white shirt… I moved him and opened the door.”
Hayoun noted that the attacker was leaning forward with his knees positioned on the controls situated between the pilot seats inside the flight deck, attempting to smash the instrumentation. Hayoun seized al-Hammami by the throat and shoved him aside, allowing other Israeli passengers to successfully bind him. On-duty flydubai crew members traveling as passengers successfully secured the aircraft, and off-duty pilots likely sent emergency codes before diverting and landing the plane safely at Tabuk airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia. Almog Itali, a passenger on the flight, told the BBC that one of the pilots on board who helped stabilize the aircraft was British.
Security Sources Trace the Background of Hamam al-Hammami
Security sources revealed that al-Hammami had earlier entered new pilot training with Oman Air. When government surveillance discovered he was visiting radical websites, the airline reassigned him to a desk job before he resigned. Sources noted that he lived most of his life outside Oman, that his mother is Syrian and his father is Omani, and that it is possible he held dual citizenship.
Authorities Investigate Lone Wolf Attack and Radical Indoctrination
Saudi authorities initially questioned al-Hammami before he was transferred to the United Arab Emirates for a second round of interrogations. Early investigations indicated the incident was likely a lone-wolf attack. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the CBS Evening News
that it looked like a suicide attempt rather than a hijacking, noting that ongoing questioning gathered personal information showing the co-pilot underwent Islamist radical indoctrination. US President Trump also suggested a possible link to Iran based on incoming intelligence. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Captain Machchhar by phone, praising him as a true hero for Israel, India, and the entire world, and later meeting with passengers including Yaniv Hayun at Ben Gurion Airport. Israeli security sources acknowledged that while the Transportation Ministry’s security division and the Mossad are responsible for monitoring and screening foreign flight crews arriving in Israel, the Transportation Ministry lacks independent intelligence capabilities to carry out such screenings properly.