Sky-high 'war': Did a Ukrainian and a Russian pilot take matters literally into their own hands on Flydubai flight? What reports say
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Sky-high 'war': Did a Ukrainian and a Russian pilot take matters literally into their own hands on Flydubai flight? What reports say")
The flight took off from Dubai and was bound for Tel Aviv Photograph: (AFP)
Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv diverted to Saudi Arabia after a ‘violent altercation’ involving two pilots. All passengers were safe
A Flydubai flight travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Saudi Arabia following a ‘violent incident’ involving two pilots, sources told CNN. The aircraft descended 17,400 feet, from 34,000 feet to around 16,600 feet, over northwestern Saudi Arabia in just over two minutes at around 1:20 am ET, according to flight-tracking data reviewed by CNN. The plane transmitted an emergency signal at 1:32 am ET before landing at Tabuk Airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia shortly before 3 am ET. As per reports, the pilot of the plane was Russian and the co-pilot was Ukrainian
A Flydubai spokesperson said flight FZ 1073 experienced an incident while en route and landed at Tabuk Airport. The airline said all passengers were safe and accounted for. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the situation was under control and that all measures are now being taken to safely return the Israeli passengers to Israel. An Israeli official said the incident was not a hijacking, adding that authorities understood it to be an internal personnel incident onboard the aircraft. As per an unnamed official, the copilot is being investigated amid growing hints that he tried to take over the plane in order to crash it.
Also Read: Dubai-Tel Aviv flydubai flight declares emergency, diverted to Saudi Arabia; hijacking ruled out
Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz held a security consultation following the incident. Israeli fighter jets were also scrambled after the emergency signal was sent, an Israeli military spokesperson told CNN. The emergency landing in Tabuk resulted in a rare mass arrival of Israeli passengers in Saudi Arabia, which does not have diplomatic relations with Israel.
Saudi Arabia opened its airspace to Israel-bound flights and Israeli airlines in 2022 as part of a US-brokered push towards normalisation. However, Riyadh has maintained that it will not establish diplomatic relations with Israel without the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
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