‘Blows Kept Coming’: Capt Smit Machchhar Recounts Flydubai ‘Crash Attempt’ In Call With Netanyahu

Capt Smit Machchhar, the Indian pilot who was attacked by his co-pilot during an alleged attempt to crash a flydubai aircraft, described the harrowing incident to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday.

Recalling the attack inside the cockpit, Machchhar said he initially felt a “big blow to the back of the head” before the strikes continued.

UAE investigators have said the co-pilot was planning a “terrorist act” and attacked Machchhar with an emergency axe. Airlines generally keep crash axes in cockpits for emergencies, including breaking windows or accessing panels in the event of a fire.

Netanyahu spoke with Machchhar, who is currently receiving treatment at a hospital in the UAE. He also invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian pilot to light a ceremonial flame on Israeli Independence Day.

What Smit Machchhar Told Netanyahu

Asked how the attack began, Machchhar said the co-pilot had asked for time to pray. Out of respect, he turned his attention toward the front of the cockpit.

“A lot of locals, they do pray, which is not out of the ordinary. While he was praying, out of respect, I was just looking at the front and not at the back,” Machchhar said.

About four to five minutes later, he felt a “big blow” to the back of his head.

“My first thought was that there was catastrophic damage to the aircraft, and something was not right,” he recalled.

As the blows continued, Machchhar realised that the aircraft itself was not the source of the problem and that the co-pilot was attacking him.

“But then after that the blows kept coming one after the other. That’s when I realised that it’s not the aircraft, it’s the other guy who was in the cockpit with me,” he said.

Machchhar said he tried to fight back and stop the co-pilot, but the initial blows had severely affected his vision, leaving everything “completely blurred out”.

He then felt the aircraft sharply descend.

“And at that point, the next thought, the next feeling that I had was that the aircraft was sharply going down. So my memory is still in bits and pieces right now. But this is what I remember out of that time,” he said.

Machchhar recalled managing to open the cockpit door once, although he believed the co-pilot closed it again.

“At this point, I remember I was lying down on the cockpit floor. And I felt the aircraft and the whooshing sound and people screaming,” he said.

Machchhar said he knew he had to make another attempt to escape.

“I had that one last fight left in me,” he said.

“That’s when I pushed against everything. I gave everything that I had and just went for the door and opened the door and thankfully people were waiting.”

UAE Says Co-Pilot Was Planning ‘Terrorist Act’

UAE investigators have said the co-pilot of the flydubai flight bound for Israel was planning a “terrorist act” and used the emergency axe in the cockpit to attack the captain.

Investigators have not disclosed what may have motivated the alleged attack.

“The co-pilot had attempted to carry out a terrorist act” and had “attacked the captain in the cockpit with the emergency axe and tried to take control of the aircraft,” UAE state news agency WAM quoted Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi as saying, citing preliminary findings.

The co-pilot is currently in custody in the UAE.

Several media outlets have identified him as Hamam al-Hammami and reported that he had previously been barred from flying in Oman over concerns about alleged extremist views. Those reports have not been independently confirmed in the preliminary investigation details released by UAE authorities.