NZ-trained pilot hailed as hero after being stabbed on Israel-bound Flydubai flight
An Indian pilot, Smit Machchhar, is being hailed as a hero after he successfully landed a Flydubai flight despite being stabbed by his co-pilot. Passengers and crew intervened to overpower the attacker after the pilot managed to unlock the cockpit door.
Why it matters
The incident highlights a rare and dangerous security breach in commercial aviation that was mitigated by the pilot's quick thinking and passenger intervention.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed Indian pilot Smit Machchhar for saving passengers after he was stabbed by his colleague in an alleged attempt to crash a Flydubai plane .
Machchhar trained in New Zealand for 18 months, according to his former instructor at Mainland Air Philip Kean who said he was pleased with how his former pupil managed the ordeal.
"I was really pleased to read how he handled the situation, the best way he could with a knife in your side," Kean told RNZ's Checkpoint .
Earlier, Kean had described Machchhar to the New Zealand Herald as "a bit of a live wire" and an "above average" pilot.
"It's just horrific. The main thing is that he's still alive.
"It's a long way to drop. It's lucky it didn't fall apart, those pilots did a great job at recovering the plane."
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