UAE investigators say flydubai co-pilot was planning 'terrorist act'

UAE investigators say flydubai co-pilot was planning 'terrorist act'

People offer prayers for the recovery of India's pilot Smit Machchhar, the captain of flydubai flight FZ 1073, at a temple in Ahmedabad on October 1, 2026. Indian pilot Smit Machchhar was hailed as a "hero" on October 1, after fighting to retain control of a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight when his co-pilot allegedly attacked him, leaving him wounded but helping avert disaster./ AFP

The news agency quoted Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi as saying that according to the initial findings of an investigation, "the co-pilot had attempted to carry out a terrorist act" and had "attacked the captain in the cockpit with the emergency axe and tried to take control of the aircraft".