Indian Pilot Who Fought Off Co-Pilot Attack on Flydubai Flight Has Over 13 Years of Experience
Captain Smit Machchhar, the Indian pilot credited with helping prevent a mid-air disaster on a Flydubai flight, has more than 13 years of commercial flying experience on the Boeing 737.
Machchhar, an Indian citizen, has been working with flydubai, the lower-cost sister carrier of Emirates, for four years. He joined the airline in June 2022 as a direct-entry captain. Before that, he spent a decade with Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet, which he joined in 2011. During his time there he served in several roles, including line training captain and senior commander. He has logged more than 9,750 flying hours and has extensive experience as a line training captain. His brother recently also joined flydubai.
The incident took place on Flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai International Airport to Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv on Wednesday morning. According to accounts of the event, an altercation broke out on the flight deck while the aircraft was cruising. One pilot allegedly attempted to sabotage the plane’s systems and crash the aircraft with everyone on board. Captain Machchhar fought back but was stabbed.
A crew member and a passenger entered the cockpit and subdued the attacker. During the struggle the aircraft lost more than 17,400 feet of altitude in about two minutes before a crew member stabilised it. The flight diverted and landed safely at an airport in Saudi Arabia. All passengers were unharmed, and the suspect was arrested and is being questioned by Saudi authorities.
Passengers on board included nationals of Israel, India and the United Arab Emirates, along with four people holding American citizenship. Flydubai has suspended its flights to and from Israel pending the investigation. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had spoken with the UAE president and that Israel would participate in the questioning of the suspect.
The episode occurred against a backdrop of heightened security concerns in the region.