'They Tried to Do 9/11': The Jet Fell 18,000 Feet in Two Minutes — How Two Off-Duty Pilots Saved Flydubai FZ1073
- Flight data shows Flydubai FZ1073 fell from ~34,000 feet to ~15,400 feet in about two minutes after the co-pilot allegedly stabbed the captain — an 18,000-foot plunge with 174 people aboard.
- Two off-duty relief pilots travelling as passengers — both European, one British — took the controls and landed the 737 MAX in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, according to passenger accounts.
- The co-pilot is now formally under arrest in Saudi Arabia; the passengers were flown home to Israel on a rescue flight, where Netanyahu welcomed them at Ben Gurion.
- Flydubai's own statement credits "on-duty Flydubai crew traveling on the flight" — a different account from the passengers' — and says motives remain unknown pending investigation.
"One pilot stabbed the other and tried to do 9/11." That's how an Israeli official described it to Channel 12 — and the flight data backs up the terror: two and a half hours after leaving Dubai, Flydubai flight FZ1073 fell 18,000 feet in roughly two minutes, before two men who happened to be in the right seats saved it.
This is the story as it stands now — bigger and stranger than what we knew hours ago. Read our earlier coverage of the initial stabbing and Netanyahu's meeting with hero passenger Yaniv Hayoun.
What happened
The jet was cruising at about 34,000 feet when the co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain with a knife. Flight-tracking data tells the rest: a general emergency code, then the code signalling unlawful interference — and a drop to around 15,400 feet in under two minutes. Israeli fighter jets scrambled as a precaution.
Inside, it was chaos. "We're here during the hijacking of an airplane. At this point we've subdued the terrorists," one bloodied passenger said in mid-flight footage. Another told i24 News: "We were either going to crash or be murdered."
Then the twist: two off-duty relief pilots were sitting among the passengers — placed on board in case rerouting pushed the original crew past duty-hour limits. They took the controls and stabilised the jet for the emergency landing in Tabuk. Both were European; one was British, a passenger told the BBC. Pure luck — the kind that saves 174 lives.
Latest verified facts
The Saudi aviation company Cluster2 says Tabuk airport received FZ1073's distress call at about 8:44 a.m. local time; the jet landed at 9:45. Both pilots were injured and hospitalised. The co-pilot — described by Israeli officials as an Omani national at the airline under a year — is now formally under arrest in Saudi Arabia. Photos obtained by the NY Post show the aircraft's rudder damaged in the struggle.
The passengers are home. A rescue flight carried them from Tabuk to Ben Gurion on Wednesday, where Netanyahu welcomed them. Not everyone boarded willingly: some refused the flydubai rescue flight and told the Jerusalem Post they wanted an Israeli aircraft instead.
One account is contested. Flydubai's statement says "the aircraft was successfully secured by on-duty Flydubai crew traveling on the flight" — differing from passengers who credit the two relief pilots. The airline says motives are unknown and the investigation is ongoing. Until the formal inquiry reports, treat the hero credits as testimony, not settled fact.
Why it matters
Strip away the politics and this is one of the most serious in-flight attacks in years: a pilot allegedly trying to crash a loaded airliner, stopped by the people in the cabin — not by any security system. Netanyahu himself stopped short of calling it terrorism, while another Israeli official did. That split will shape everything from the Saudi prosecution to airline security policy.
The 18,000-foot plunge should end any "isolated incident" framing. The aircraft was pointed at the ground. The only reason 174 people are alive is a chain of improbabilities: a passenger who fought, a captain who unlocked the cockpit door before collapsing, and two relief pilots who happened to be deadheading to their next assignment.
Impact on the USA and the world
Israel has already tightened checks on pilots flying into the country, and the incident has reignited an uncomfortable debate — USA Today asks whether a cockpit attack could happen on a US flight. Reinforced cockpit doors protect against intruders, not against the person already inside.
For the region, the Saudi handling is the story to watch. Riyadh arrested the suspect, treated the wounded, and flew the passengers out — textbook crisis management from a kingdom with no formal diplomatic relations with Israel. What the prosecution reveals about motive will be the next chapter.
Related coverage: 'I Watch Air Crash Investigation, Mr. Prime Minister': The Bloodied Hero Netanyahu Hugged After Saving Flydubai FZ1073
What happens next
Three things to watch. First, the Saudi interrogation: the co-pilot's motive is the biggest unanswered question, and Riyadh hasn't said a word about what he's told them. Second, the formal investigation — the flight recorders will settle whose account of the landing is right.
Third, the policy fallout. If the inquiry confirms a deliberate crash attempt by a crew member, airlines and regulators globally will face pressure to overhaul how they screen the people they hand the controls to. The passengers of FZ1073 are home. The questions are only getting started.