On Wednesday, a routine commercial flight operated by low-cost carrier flydubai, traveling between Dubai International Airport and Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport, was upended by a violent cockpit incident that forced an emergency diversion to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The confrontation between the two flight crew left both pilots injured, prompting immediate medical care and a full investigation by regional authorities.
According to official statements from flydubai, all 170+ passengers and remaining crew members on board Flight FZ1073 emerged unharmed and were accounted for after the successful emergency landing at Tabuk Airport. However, both pilots were transported to local hospitals for treatment of their injuries, Reuters confirmed citing Saudi airport officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered public clarification of the incident’s sequence, confirming that one pilot stabbed his co-pilot in what he described as an apparent intentional attempt to crash the aircraft carrying all people on board. Following the outbreak of violence in the cockpit, Netanyahu said, a quick-acting Israeli passenger and an active crew member managed to breach the cockpit and subdue the attacking pilot. Additional crew members then stepped in to regain control of the aircraft and stabilize its trajectory before the diversion.
The suspect pilot has been taken into custody and is currently undergoing questioning by Saudi law enforcement, Netanyahu confirmed. Data from independent flight tracking service Flightradar24 corroborates the chaos of the mid-flight incident: the Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft plummeted from a cruising altitude of roughly 34,000 feet to just 17,000 feet in approximately 60 seconds, a sharp, uncontrolled descent that aligns with accounts of the attempted crash.
In an official statement released shortly after the landing, flydubai said the airline is fully cooperating with all relevant Saudi, Emirati and Israeli authorities to map out the full circumstances of the attack, and will release additional updates as more information becomes available. The incident has raised new questions about commercial aviation cockpit security and pre-flight crew screening protocols across the Middle East, a region that has long grappled with geopolitical tensions impacting air travel.