‘I couldn’t let everybody else die’: Flydubai pilot speaks out Oct 13, 2026

Description

Smit Machchhar, the hero Flydubai captain who fought off a savage attack by his copilot, kept fighting because he could not “let everybody else die,” he said in his first public remarks since Wednesday’s suspected hijacking attempt.

A horrific mid-air catastrophe on flight FZ 1073 heading to Tel Aviv was averted in a stunning turn of events on Wednesday when passengers bravely rushed into the cockpit and stand-in pilots regained control of the aircraft.

CNN’s Nic Robertson has the details. And, CNN’s Jeremy Diamond and Anderson Cooper speak with passengers who witnessed and participated in the struggle to overcome the attacker in the cockpit.

0:00 Pilot Smit Machchhar describes the cockpit struggle
2:48 Woman who saw the pilot being stabbed alerts passengers
4:03 Man recounts what he heard before he rushed into the cockpit to help
6:28 Passenger in the second row of the plane on what he saw

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