Israel treating Flydubai hijacking scare as terror attack after co-pilot allegedly stabbed captain

A Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after the co-pilot allegedly repeatedly stabbed the captain in what Israeli authorities are now according to Israeli journalist Amit Segal treating as a terrorist attack.

Flight FZ1073, a Boeing 737 carrying 174 passengers, including 27 children, landed safely at Tabuk Airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia after transmitting emergency signals that raised fears of a possible hijacking.

Following situational assessments and testimony from passengers, Israel is treating the incident as a “full-fledged terrorist attack,” Segal reported.

The co-pilot apparently stabbed the captain several times before crew members and passengers managed to break through the cockpit door and overpower him, according to Segal.

“An extremely serious disaster was averted,” Segal quoted a senior Israeli official as saying.

The co-pilot was being questioned, and indications were mounting that he intended to take control of the aircraft and crash it with the passengers on board, according to the official.

The new information followed earlier assessments that the incident was an altercation between the two pilots.

An Israeli official initially told Reuters that the emergency signals were transmitted after the pilots became involved in a physical altercation. The Prime Minister’s Office had also said earlier that the incident was determined not to have been a hijacking.

The aircraft was flying over Jordanian airspace when it first transmitted the 7700 transponder code, indicating a general emergency, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24. Several minutes later, it transmitted 7500, the international code indicating possible unlawful interference.

The plane subsequently transmitted the general emergency code again before landing in Tabuk.

The signals triggered an immediate security response in Israel, with Israeli Air Force fighter jets scrambled amid fears that an aircraft carrying Israeli passengers had been hijacked.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held consultations on the incident, while IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir conducted a situational assessment with the commander of the Israeli Air Force and other senior military officials.

“Following concerns over an aviation incident, Prime Minister Netanyahu held consultations on the matter and is monitoring developments,” the Prime Minister’s Office said. “The incident is under control and all measures are currently being deployed in order to return the Israeli passengers safely to Israel.”

The Transportation Ministry said that “Ben-Gurion Airport is operating as usual,” while the Israel Airports Authority said that “Israel’s airspace is open.” Earlier reports said departures from Israel had been temporarily halted as a precaution during the initial hijacking scare.

Flydubai operates daily flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv. Israel and the United Arab Emirates established diplomatic relations in 2020 under the Abraham Accords. Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have diplomatic relations.