An Israel-bound flydubai flight from Dubai was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after an alleged violent confrontation between the pilots while the aircraft was in mid-air.
Flight FZ1073, a Boeing 737 operating from Dubai to Tel Aviv, landed safely at Tabuk Airport at about 9:45am local time after an emergency was declared during the flight.
The airport operator said the captain and co-pilot were injured and taken to hospital for treatment.
Flydubai confirmed that the aircraft had experienced an incident while en route but said all passengers were safe and accounted for.
“Flight FZ 1073 experienced an incident while en route. The aircraft has landed safely in Tabuk Airport (TUU) and all passengers are safe and accounted for,” the airline said.
Several Israeli media outlets reported that a physical fight had broken out between the pilots and that a distress signal was activated during the incident.
According to reports, two other pilots travelling as passengers subsequently entered the cockpit and helped take control of the aircraft, allowing it to land safely in Saudi Arabia.
The exact circumstances surrounding the confrontation had not been officially established as of Wednesday, with authorities continuing their investigation.
A passenger’s relative, Yasmin Abukasis, told AFP that her daughter, who was on the flight, described a frightening scene inside the cockpit.
“She said one pilot tried to kill the other pilot with a knife. They heard shouting,” Abukasis said.
She added that her daughter reported seeing blood in the cockpit and that passengers became terrified when the aircraft rapidly lost altitude.
“All the while, the plane started going down very fast. People thought they were going to die,” she said.
Flight-tracking data cited in reports showed that the aircraft experienced a sharp loss of altitude, dropping from nearly 34,000 feet to below 17,000 feet within a short period.
Israeli authorities initially feared that the aircraft could have been hijacked, prompting security measures and the scrambling of fighter jets. That possibility was later dismissed, according to reports.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had held consultations over the incident and was monitoring developments.
“The incident is under control, and all measures are currently being deployed in order to return the Israeli passengers safely to Israel,” the statement said.
The Israeli military also said it was checking reports surrounding the incident.
Meanwhile, relatives of passengers gathered at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel as they awaited information about their loved ones.
The nationality of the pilots and the precise cause of the confrontation had not been officially confirmed at the time of reporting.
Authorities in Saudi Arabia and Israel, as well as flydubai, are investigating the incident.
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