How FlyDubai Passengers and Crew Averted Disaster After Pilot Was Stabbed During Flight
New York Times
N
New York Times
Original Source
A badly wounded Indian pilot managed to unlock the cockpit door after being stabbed by the first officer. Four Israeli passengers heroically overwhelmed the attacker, allowing a backup pilot to land the aircraft safely in Saudi Arabia.
How FlyDubai Passengers and Crew Averted Disaster After Pilot Was Stabbed During Flight - The New York Times
Skip to contentSkip to site index
Log in
* Home
* + U.S.
+ International
+ Canada
+ Español
+ 中文
War in the Middle East
* Diplomatic Efforts
* Houthi-Saudi Conflict
* U.S. Cost of War
* Video: Oil Exports
!A FlyDubai airliner flying low, its wheels lowered.
The Mother’s Scream That Sent Passengers to the Rescue
A badly wounded Indian pilot managed to unlock the cockpit door. Four Israeli men teamed up to overwhelm an attacker and avert disaster.
*A FlyDubai plane carrying Israeli passengers who had earlier been aboard another FlyDubai aircraft that made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia approaches Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on Wednesday.Credit...Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press*
The Mother’s Scream That Sent Passengers to the Rescue
A badly wounded Indian pilot managed to unlock the cockpit door. Four Israeli men teamed up to overwhelm an attacker and avert disaster.
A FlyDubai plane carrying Israeli passengers who had earlier been aboard another FlyDubai aircraft that made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia approaches Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on Wednesday.Credit...Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press
Supported by
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Listen · 16:16 min
*
*
*
By David M. HalbfingerNatan OdenheimerAdam RasgonJohnatan Reiss and Aaron Boxerman
The reporters interviewed more than a dozen passengers on Flight 1073.
Oct. 2, 2026Updated 11:43 a.m. ET
Five-year-old Nina Manes, flying home to Tel Aviv with her family in business class, needed to use the bathroom.
Her mother, Tali, stood waiting for her outside the plane’s lavatory, when she suddenly heard frightening shouts and loud bangs coming from behind the closed door to the flight deck.
What unfolded next was a harrowing chain of events that led the passengers aboard FlyDubai Flight 1073 to think that they were all about to die in a terrorist attack — but instead turned into a tale of heroism on the part of an Indian pilot and a handful of Israelis.
Hearing what sounded worrisomely like a melee, Ms. Manes, 46, said she pulled a backup pilot, seated in his uniform nearby, by the hand and prodded him to investigate.
He pulled open the cockpit door — which had been unlocked from the inside — onto a horrific scene.
There was blood all over the flight deck.
And the first officer was stabbing the captain, again and again and again.
Four Israeli passengers aboard Wednesday morning’s flight from Dubai are being hailed for racing unarmed into harm’s way, overpowering the first officer, giving the captain first aid, and making it possible for a second backup pilot to take over and land the plane safely in Saudi Arabia.
A sharp drop in altitude
30,000 feet
The plane dropped more than 17,000 feet in less than two minutes.
20,000 feet
10,000 feet
8:00 a.m.
8:10
8:20
8:30
8:40
8:50
9:00
30,000 feet
The plane dropped more than 17,000 feet in less than two minutes.
20,000 feet
10,000 feet
8:00 a.m.
8:15
8:30
8:45
9:00
Note: Times are local time in Saudi Arabia.
Source: Flightradar24
Josh Holder/The New York Times
David M. Halbfinger is The Times’s Jerusalem bureau chief, leading coverage of Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. He also held that post from 2017 to 2021. He was the politics editor from 2021 to 2025.
Natan Odenheimer is a Times reporter in Jerusalem, covering Israeli and Palestinian affairs.
Adam Rasgon is a reporter for The Times in Jerusalem, covering Israeli and Palestinian affairs.
Aaron Boxerman is a Times reporter covering Israel and Gaza. He is based in Jerusalem.
*
*
*
Related Content
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Site Index
Site Information Navigation
* © 2026 The New York Times Company
+ NYTCo
+ Contact Us
+ Accessibility
+ Work with us
+ Advertise
+ T Brand Studio
+ Privacy Policy
+ Cookie Policy
+ Terms of Service
+ Terms of Sale
+ Site Map
+ Canada
+ International
+ Help
+ Subscriptions
+
+ California Notices
Skip to contentSkip to site index
Log in
* Home
* + U.S.
+ International
+ Canada
+ Español
+ 中文
War in the Middle East
* Diplomatic Efforts
* Houthi-Saudi Conflict
* U.S. Cost of War
* Video: Oil Exports
!A FlyDubai airliner flying low, its wheels lowered.
The Mother’s Scream That Sent Passengers to the Rescue
A badly wounded Indian pilot managed to unlock the cockpit door. Four Israeli men teamed up to overwhelm an attacker and avert disaster.
*A FlyDubai plane carrying Israeli passengers who had earlier been aboard another FlyDubai aircraft that made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia approaches Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on Wednesday.Credit...Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press*
The Mother’s Scream That Sent Passengers to the Rescue
A badly wounded Indian pilot managed to unlock the cockpit door. Four Israeli men teamed up to overwhelm an attacker and avert disaster.
A FlyDubai plane carrying Israeli passengers who had earlier been aboard another FlyDubai aircraft that made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia approaches Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on Wednesday.Credit...Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press
Supported by
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Listen · 16:16 min
*
*
*
By David M. HalbfingerNatan OdenheimerAdam RasgonJohnatan Reiss and Aaron Boxerman
The reporters interviewed more than a dozen passengers on Flight 1073.
Oct. 2, 2026Updated 11:43 a.m. ET
Five-year-old Nina Manes, flying home to Tel Aviv with her family in business class, needed to use the bathroom.
Her mother, Tali, stood waiting for her outside the plane’s lavatory, when she suddenly heard frightening shouts and loud bangs coming from behind the closed door to the flight deck.
What unfolded next was a harrowing chain of events that led the passengers aboard FlyDubai Flight 1073 to think that they were all about to die in a terrorist attack — but instead turned into a tale of heroism on the part of an Indian pilot and a handful of Israelis.
Hearing what sounded worrisomely like a melee, Ms. Manes, 46, said she pulled a backup pilot, seated in his uniform nearby, by the hand and prodded him to investigate.
He pulled open the cockpit door — which had been unlocked from the inside — onto a horrific scene.
There was blood all over the flight deck.
And the first officer was stabbing the captain, again and again and again.
Four Israeli passengers aboard Wednesday morning’s flight from Dubai are being hailed for racing unarmed into harm’s way, overpowering the first officer, giving the captain first aid, and making it possible for a second backup pilot to take over and land the plane safely in Saudi Arabia.
A sharp drop in altitude
30,000 feet
The plane dropped more than 17,000 feet in less than two minutes.
20,000 feet
10,000 feet
8:00 a.m.
8:10
8:20
8:30
8:40
8:50
9:00
30,000 feet
The plane dropped more than 17,000 feet in less than two minutes.
20,000 feet
10,000 feet
8:00 a.m.
8:15
8:30
8:45
9:00
Note: Times are local time in Saudi Arabia.
Source: Flightradar24
Josh Holder/The New York Times
David M. Halbfinger is The Times’s Jerusalem bureau chief, leading coverage of Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. He also held that post from 2017 to 2021. He was the politics editor from 2021 to 2025.
Natan Odenheimer is a Times reporter in Jerusalem, covering Israeli and Palestinian affairs.
Adam Rasgon is a reporter for The Times in Jerusalem, covering Israeli and Palestinian affairs.
Aaron Boxerman is a Times reporter covering Israel and Gaza. He is based in Jerusalem.
*
*
*
Related Content
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Site Index
Site Information Navigation
* © 2026 The New York Times Company
+ NYTCo
+ Contact Us
+ Accessibility
+ Work with us
+ Advertise
+ T Brand Studio
+ Privacy Policy
+ Cookie Policy
+ Terms of Service
+ Terms of Sale
+ Site Map
+ Canada
+ International
+ Help
+ Subscriptions
+
+ California Notices
🔗 Share Article
Tags:#الطيران#الأمن#حوادث#إسرائيل#دبي#بطولة
Source: New York Times
For Context
Related reads from the same topic or latest developments
