Newz#Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that the pilot of a Tel Aviv-bound flydubai flight had tried to crash the plane and kill its passengers, after the aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. Passengers gave a similar account of the incident on board, describing a fight for control after the plane suddenly plummeted, losing around 17,000 feet of altitude in the span of a minute, according to the Flightradar24 website. Flydubai said all the passengers — of whom 166 out of 174 were Israeli, according to media reports — were safe, adding that reasons for the altercation were unknown.
A passenger told AFP that the group had departed again for Tel Aviv after a wait in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk. “During the flight, as they approached the country, one of the pilots stabbed the other pilot, and apparently tried to crash the plane with everyone on board,” Netanyahu said in a video message. He said he spoke to an Israeli passenger who broke into the cockpit as the plane started to plunge and fought the pilot who was trying to bring down the aircraft.
“I salute these heroes, who showed extraordinary resourcefulness and courage. They saved many lives; they prevented a major disaster.” The flight was rerouted to Tabuk “at 9:45 am (0645 GMT) and its captain and copilot were found to have injuries and were transported to hospital”, a statement from the company operating the airport said. – ‘Out of control’ – Passenger Miryam Shira Ohayon said the plane was “pretty much out of control” after one of the pilots tried to stab the other while they were flying over Jordan en route from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
“So the co-pilot tried to murder the pilot and basically carry out a suicide attack on the plane,” she told reporters by speakerphone held up by her mother, who was waiting at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv. “It was really on the way to crashing, and it was simply the resourcefulness of many people who took control of the co-pilot and neutralised him,” she said, adding a doctor on board provided first aid. “Other than the pilot, there were no injuries, but the bigger fear was really a crash, which is exactly what he was trying to do.” Netanyahu said that another air crew member had taken over the controls to land the plane, and that the pilot who allegedly stabbed his colleague was being interrogated by Saudi authorities.
The plane from Dubai International Airport plunged 17,000ft in 29 seconds Israel's defence minister has labelled the incident as a 'jihadist terror attack' Passengers and crew staged a dramatic intervention to subdue the attacker and the plane eventually made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
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