Plumber stops FlyDubai hijacking attempt

Oct 02, 2026

A co-pilot on a Dubai–Tel Aviv flight stabbed the captain and tried to crash the plane, and passengers stopped him — a near-disaster avoided, but a worrying sign that the threat can now come from inside the cockpit.

  • The co-pilot stabbed the captain and put the plane into a steep dive before passengers dragged him out of the cockpit and tied him up with headphone cords.
  • The wounded captain got the cockpit door open; two off-duty pilots then landed the plane safely in Saudi Arabia with all 174 people alive.
  • An Israeli passenger, a plumber, helped pull the controls back — he said he learned from a TV show about plane crashes; a dentist on board treated the captain.
  • The attacker is an Omani citizen; Israel believes he was radicalized and acted alone, while Trump has floated an Iran link that investigators have not confirmed.
  • The incident raises hard questions about airline screening — how a knife got on board — and about how little airlines vet and disclose about who is flying.

Outlook: Expect pressure on Gulf carriers and aviation regulators to tighten crew vetting and cockpit security as the investigation in the UAE continues.

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