Indian pilot told Modi how he opened the Flydubai cockpit door during the attack

Machchar was flying on a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, which after an attack by another pilot was forced to divert to a backup route in Saudi Arabia. According to him, he decided to act when he realized that the aircraft was rapidly losing altitude.

In a video call with Modi, the captain said that he was “lying injured on the floor”, but still tried to open the door from the inside. He added that other people also helped bring the situation under control, while he himself was fighting for his life at that moment.

The aircraft began to descend sharply by more than 17,000 feet, or about 5,200 meters, two hours after departure on Wednesday. After that, passengers and crew subdued the attacker and were able to land the aircraft safely.

Modi told the captain that his courage, patience, and quick decision saved many lives, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called him “a true hero”. Machchar was first taken to a hospital in Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia, then evacuated to Abu Dhabi, where, according to reports, he is in stable condition.

The Indian embassy in the UAE said on Thursday that Machchar was “in good condition and recovering well”. Ambassador Deepak Mittal said he was proud of the captain’s bravery and was “very reassured” after meeting him.

Machchar himself said that he does not want to consider the injury a wound, because that would make recovery more difficult. He described what happened as a long road to becoming healthy again.

Sources

• Material: bbc.co.uk