On the morning of September 30, a Flydubai aircraft heading to Tel Aviv issued an emergency signal and after some time made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Sputnik Kazakhstan.
The airline later confirmed that a fight had occurred between the pilots. "According to available information, the second pilot stabbed the aircraft commander during the flight," the statement said.
Reports on the number of passengers vary. Israeli media reported that there were more than 150 passengers on board. Other media outlets wrote that there were 174 passengers, including 27 children.
Israel's Channel 12, citing a senior Israeli official, reported that a reserve crew took control of the aircraft and landed it in Saudi Arabia.
According to the Flightradar24 service, the aircraft changed its signal type twice: first it sent a hijacking signal, then an emergency signal. "The aircraft first sent signal 7700, then 7500, and then 7700 again," the service's website said.
During the fight in the cockpit, the Flydubai aircraft descended at a very high speed — its vertical speed was approximately 567 kilometers per hour, or more than 150 meters per second. According to FlightRadar data, the airliner descended about 4.5 kilometers in just 29 seconds.
According to the latest information, the injured captain is a UAE citizen, while the attacking second pilot is an Omani citizen.