Flydubai flight sends hijacking alert after pilots reportedly fight in cockpit (UPDATED)
A flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Saudi Arabia on Sept. 30 after its pilots reportedly got into a physical altercation in the cockpit, prompting emergency signals and fears that the plane had been hijacked.
The Boeing 737 landed safely at Tabuk airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia, flydubai said. The airline said all passengers were safe and accounted for.
Flight tracking data showed that the aircraft first transmitted squawk code 7700, indicating a general emergency, and then 7500, used to signal a hijacking or other unlawful interference. Israeli fighter jets were scrambled as authorities investigated the incident. Around 180 passengers were reported to be aboard. Вставлений текст
An Israeli official told Reuters that the emergency signals were transmitted after the pilots got into a physical altercation. The Israeli prime minister's office later said the incident was not believed to have been a hijacking.
Israeli broadcaster N12 reported that the pilot was of Russian origin and the co-pilot of Ukrainian origin. The circumstances that led to the fight remain unclear.
Passengers later told Israeli media they heard screams and saw blood in the cockpit. One passenger told N12 that someone had stabbed a pilot with a pocketknife, while another said one of the pilots had been seriously wounded and the aircraft began rapidly descending. Those accounts have not been officially confirmed. Вставлений текст
Israeli security sources earlier told the Times of Israel that the emergency appeared to have resulted from an altercation between the pilots. Вставлений текст
Flydubai said it would provide further details as they become available.
UPDATE: An off-duty group of pilots traveling as passengers took control of the flydubai aircraft after the co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain, Israeli broadcaster N12 reported, citing a senior Israeli official.
According to the report, the aircraft began rapidly losing altitude before passengers and crew members forced their way into the cockpit and subdued the co-pilot. The off-duty pilots then took control of the aircraft, which later landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
The Israeli official told N12 that the co-pilot had attempted either to seize the aircraft and fly it into the ground or crash it, comparing the potential consequences to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. The reported motive has not been independently established.
N12 said there were indications that the co-pilot was Omani, while the captain was reportedly a UAE citizen. Earlier reports claiming that the pilots were Ukrainian and Russian were later retracted.
UPDATE-2: A Ukrainian and a Russian pilot were aboard the flydubai flight after all - but as off-duty passengers, Israel Hayom reports.
The two reportedly helped take control of the aircraft and land it after the co-pilot attacked the captain.