Story preview
Topics in this story
Continue reading on the publisher site for the full article.
Read on publisher →indianexpress.com
News Atlas is free and independent. If it’s useful to you, you can support it with a coffee. ☕ Buy me a coffee
Coverage
Tone
Context from Wikipedia on the organisations, people and places in this story.
Indian airline captain
Smit Machchhar is an Indian commercial pilot who, while serving as the captain aboard Flydubai Flight 1073 on 30 September 2026 on a Boeing 737 MAX, was stabbed by his Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami in the cockpit. Machchhar received life-threatening injuries in the attack, but managed to open the cockpit door from the inside, allowing crew and passengers to intervene and subdue the co-pilot. The airplane then safely made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, with no fatalities.
More on Wikipedia ↗
Airline of the United Arab Emirates
Dubai Aviation Corporation, doing business as Flydubai, is an Emirati government-owned airline based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The airline mainly operates out of Terminal 2 at Dubai International Airport, though some flights operate from Terminal 3. The airline operates a total of 131 destinations, serving the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe from Dubai. The company slogan is "Get Going".
More on Wikipedia ↗Outlets covering it
13
in the last 3 days
First reported
3 days ago
12 outlets since
Countries
12 other outlets reported this story in the last 3 days.
Wounded after being stabbed by his co-pilot, Captain Smit Machchhar fought to open the cockpit door as the FlyDubai plane plunged, allowing passengers to intervene.
Concerns were reported over Hamam al-Hammami’s alleged extremist views and previous employment as investigators examine the 30 September incident
Deleted tweets reviewed by CNN show Flydubai co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami wanted a wife who would wear a niqab and quit working after marriage, with some families reportedly reversing their refusal once they learned he was a pilot, part of a wider investigation into his background after the alleged cockpit attack on…