According to Israeli news site ynet, on September 30 local time, an incident of knife attack occurred in the cockpit of a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Israel. A pilot was suspected of attempting to crash the plane, and the flight eventually had to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
Dahab Air Flight had a total of 174 passengers, including 27 children. It took off from Dubai at 7:05 am local time and was originally scheduled to land at Ben-Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv around 9:30 am.
After flying for approximately 90 minutes, the aircraft entered Jordanian airspace and transmitted a 7700 code indicating a "general emergency situation". Subsequently, the aircraft transmitted a 7500 code, indicating that the aircraft had been subjected to unlawful interference. This code is typically used in hijacking scenarios. The aircraft then turned back over Jordan, and finally made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
Israel initially considered the incident as a “potential hijacking situation”. Later, it was determined that the alert stemmed from a violent conflict between two pilots in the cockpit. At the time of the incident, the Israeli Air Force rushed out fighter jets to try to find out more about the situation aboard the aircraft.
Israeli authorities currently consider this incident to be a terrorist attack, and believe that the co-pilot was an attacker who attempted to cause the plane to crash. The authorities are also investigating whether he still has suicidal intentions.
Israeli officials said that the co-pilot was a man from Oman. He was suspected of attempting to crash the plane during the conflict in the cockpit. He was stabbed in the conflict and eventually subdued with the help of another pilot and an Israeli passenger.
A passenger assisting the assailant on the plane.
According to an official, “The plane suddenly descended sharply at that time, and it was almost a disaster.” Another official stated, “At this stage, the likelihood of it being a suicide attempt is very high.”
According to Flightradar24, the aircraft dropped from an altitude of about 34,000 feet to 14,000 feet, with a sudden descent rate of approximately 30,976 feet per minute.
Dubai Airways stated that they have launched an investigation into this incident and informed relevant Israeli authorities that "all passengers are safe and have been relocated." The airline said they will dispatch another aircraft from Dubai to Saudi Arabia to pick up the passengers and fly them onward to Israel.
An Israeli official stated: "This incident was certainly no ordinary accident."
Data shows that the flight experienced a sudden decline during its journey from Dubai to Tel Aviv. Flightradar24
A passenger on board said that first they heard screams, then the cockpit door was opened, and everyone saw “a large amount of blood”. Someone stabbed a pilot with a folding knife, and a doctor and nurse on board immediately provided emergency treatment.
"At that time we felt the plane was about to crash," she added, Israel passengers subdued the suspect with crew members, followed by an emergency landing. “For a brief moment, we all thought we wouldn’t survive.”
This incident led to a large-scale security response in Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Katz held an emergency security consultation. The Israeli Police Action Department ordered the establishment of a joint command center with other security agencies.
In the early stages of the incident, an Israeli security official stated that there was no conclusive evidence of a hijacking, but they were highly alert due to their inability to contact the pilot.
The official said at that time: “There is no solid information indicating that an airlift occurred. It was the pilot who triggered the distress signal. We are unable to communicate with the pilot, which is concerning.”
