Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi: UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Tuesday conferred the First Class Order of Zayed II on Indian pilot Captain Smit Machhar and the flydubai crew members for their bravery in ensuring passengers’ safety when a co-pilot attacked on a Dubai-to-Tel Aviv flight.
Dubai Crown Prince Presents Medals
In a statement, the Dubai Media Office said Dubai Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum presented the medals to the crew members, praising their actions and sense of responsibility.
Recap of the Incident
The incident took place on September 30 aboard flydubai flight FZ1073, which was flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv with more than 170 passengers. During the flight, the co-pilot suddenly attacked Captain Machhar with a “crash axe”, the axe kept for emergencies, seriously injuring him. Despite this, he did not lose courage and opened the cockpit door. A pilot among the passengers then took control of the aircraft and landed it safely.
Note: Earlier coverage in this series described the attacker’s weapon as a knife and the landing as taking place at Tabuk, Saudi Arabia; this source specifies a crash axe and a landing by a passenger-pilot, so please verify these details before publishing.
