Heroic Passengers Thwart Attempted Plane Crash
This past Wednesday, passengers on FlyDubai’s Flight 1073 were united in an extraordinary moment of bravery. By Friday, these strangers had become family after experiencing a harrowing incident. Passengers Daniel Schlichter, Zvika Manes, Tal Samuel, and Asaf Rajuan reunited for the first time since those terrifying events.
During the flight, their Boeing 737 Max began a rapid descent towards the Arabian Desert. The co-pilot, from Oman, had attacked the captain and seized the controls, attempting to crash the plane filled with Israeli passengers. The aircraft plunged 14,000 feet in seconds, nearing a tragic collision.
From the cockpit, Captain Smit Machchhar described the struggle to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “The co-pilot wanted to pray. Suddenly, I felt a big blow to my head,” Machchhar recounted. Despite his injuries, he managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers to intervene.
Zvika Manes, seated in the first row with his family, heard his daughter’s cries of alarm as the co-pilot stabbed the pilot. In those moments, Daniel Schlichter braced himself and his wife for the worst. “If we have to go, we’ll go together,” he thought.
Recognizing the peril, passengers acted decisively. Manes said, “I must run. I switched to an animal instinct to save my family.” Tal Samuel described the passengers’ transformation. “We were like lions in a defensive stance,” he remarked.
Along with an Israeli plumber named Yaniv Hayoun, they reached the injured captain, whom they hailed as a hero for his resistance against the co-pilot. They overcame Hamam al Hamami, the co-pilot, who had been banned from flying in Oman due to extremist views. Israeli investigators later discovered his social media posts expressing hostility towards Jews. UAE officials labeled the act as terrorism.
In the struggle at the cockpit’s entrance, Tal Samuel noticed the controls unattended. Fortunately, off-duty pilots sitting nearby intervened. “One leaned over to stabilize the aircraft,” Samuel explained. The freefall ended as the plane regained control.
Despite securing the cockpit, the captain needed urgent medical attention. Manes shouted for a doctor, and Shota Musaev, a dentist, responded. “I said to my wife, ‘I need to go,'” Musaev recalled. He treated Machchhar’s wounds, gravely concerned about their severity.
The plane needed to land promptly, but the nearest airport was in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, a nation without diplomatic ties to Israel. “I worried about being detained, seeing the blood,” Manes acknowledged. However, in an unexpected reception, they were welcomed, and the captain was quickly hospitalized.
Dr. Musaev stayed by the captain’s side in the hospital, feeling a profound bond. He reflected, “I think from this time, we are a very big family.” Expressing gratitude in Hebrew, Musaev said, “Without his quick thinking, we wouldn’t have survived; likewise, without us, he might not have survived.”
The story of these courageous passengers underscores the resilience and cooperation in the face of adversity.