«I pulled the control stick». Flydubai passenger recounts how he managed to save Dubai — Tel Aviv flight
Other people on board described the terrifying seconds when they were already preparing for death.
An Israeli passenger on a plane flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv recounted how he managed to subdue the co-pilot after he stabbed the captain and likely attempted to crash the Boeing 737 Max 8 into the ground. Other people on board described the «horrifying» seconds when they were already preparing for death, writes the BBC.
Flydubai flight FZ1073 passenger Yaniv Hayun met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the backup flight landed in Tel Aviv. He was still wearing a blood-stained T-shirt.
Israeli authorities believe the incident was a jihadist attack attempt. The investigation into the incident is ongoing, and no official statements have yet been made regarding the suspect's motives.
However, Flydubai announced that it is suspending flights to Tel Aviv for the duration of the investigation.
After Hayun neutralized the attacker, the plane was stabilized, and an emergency landing in the city of Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia was performed by two other pilots who were on board as passengers.
«There was no one in the pilot's seats»
Hayun told the Prime Minister that he suspected something was wrong when the plane suddenly began losing altitude, descending 5.2 thousand meters in less than two minutes.
«Someone started screaming, the lights went out,» Yaniv Hayun says in a video released by the Israeli Prime Minister.
After that, he, along with other passengers, tried to open the cockpit door, but it was not an easy task.
«The pilot who was stabbed was very close to the door, so it was difficult for us to open it,» Hayun said.
But, according to him, the injured pilot managed to open the door before losing consciousness.
«When I entered, I saw the attacker near the control panel, between the two seats… there was no one in the pilot's seats. One was lying on the floor, the other was near the control panel. Another guy entered [the cockpit] with me. I grabbed the attacker, put him in a chokehold and pulled him — first of all — out.»
According to him, the attacker «tried to smash the instruments to disable the plane.»
Yaniv recounted that he called the Israelis who were on the plane, and together they «pinned the attacker to the floor so he couldn't resist.»
Yaniv also explained that he pulled the control stick [of the plane].
«You pulled the control stick?» — Netanyahu interjected.
«I watch «Air Crash Investigations», Mr. Prime Minister,» Yaniv replied. «The plane started to level out, and then the pilot [likely referring to one of the pilots who were traveling as passengers on the plane, — BBC] told me that he would take over the controls.»
Netanyahu called Hayun a «hero» and asked how he managed it.
«We are a nation of lions, aren't we?» the passenger replied.
Netanyahu said he saw «a great hero» before him, and pointing to a blood stain on the T-shirt, asked: «Wow, is that from him?»
The passenger replied: «Yes, it's from him.»
«What you did is simply incredible,» Netanyahu said.
«It feels like I went through hell»
Another passenger, Zvika Menes, told Israeli public broadcaster Kan that he helped subdue the attacker, while others «helped tie him up using his own plastic ties and headphone cords.»
«The second pilot, who was in the passenger cabin, replaced the co-pilot [in the cockpit], so they landed the plane,» the man added.
Later, Flydubai passengers were transported to Tel Aviv on a backup plane. At Ben Gurion Airport, they were met by many people with Israeli flags, who welcomed them with music, dances, and songs.
«Thank God I'm alive,» one of the passengers, Haim Lazarovich, told reporters. «The most terrifying thing during that flight was when the pilot lost control.»
18-year-old passenger Oren Cohen described the experience as a «very difficult moment.»
«Maybe only five minutes passed, but it felt like I went through hell. I heard my brother, who was sitting behind me, start screaming that we would all die,» he added.
An Israeli emergency services employee later told the BBC that several people on board «were very distressed and crying as they disembarked the plane.»
The captain, Indian national Smith Machhar, who sustained stab wounds, was taken to the hospital but is in stable condition, the Indian embassy in Saudi Arabia reported.
The attacker has been arrested and is being interrogated by Saudi authorities.
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