Photo via The Straits Times

Israel-bound flight diverted to Saudi Arabia after brawl between pilots, Israeli official says

Read the original at The Straits Times ↗
Cite

The Straits Times. (2026, September 30). Israel-bound flight diverted to Saudi Arabia after brawl between pilots, Israeli official says. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/middle-east/israel-bound-flight-diverted-to-saudi-arabia-after-brawl-between-pilots-israeli-official-says

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

The Straits Times · collected 2026-09-30 · by The Straits Times
Content note This article describes violence described in detail.

Quick Summary

A Flydubai flight bound for Israel from Dubai experienced an incident that led it to divert to Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia after transmitting emergency signals. The Israeli government reported that the pilots had a physical altercation, though no official confirmation of this was provided by the airline. The plane carried around 150 passengers and landed safely; however, one passenger's daughter described hearing screams and seeing blood on board. This event underscores safety concerns on routes between Israel and Arab countries following recent diplomatic normalizations.
Written by AI on 2026-09-30, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On September 30, 2026, a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv signaled an emergency and was diverted to land at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia. The incident initially raised concerns about a possible hijacking, prompting Israel to scramble warplanes. However, Israeli officials later reported that the emergency signals were due to a physical altercation between the plane's two pilots rather than a hijacking attempt.

The flight, identified as Flydubai Flight FZ1073, transmitted multiple emergency alerts after takeoff and over Jordanian airspace before landing safely in Saudi Arabia. Passengers on board managed to overpower the attacker, who was later identified by UAE officials as Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami. Al-Hammami allegedly attempted to crash the plane into Tel Aviv's airport but was stopped by passengers.

UAE Attorney-General Hamad Saif al-Shamsi stated that signs of al-Hammami’s radicalization first emerged in 2017 while he was studying engineering at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. He reportedly became influenced by extremist literature and online content glorifying terrorist organizations during this period.

Written for “Flydubai Hijacker's Radicalization Path” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 345 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Flydubai Hijacker's Radicalization Path
Crime & Law · 346 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 11% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Flight to Tel Aviv diverts to Saudi Arabia after reported feud between pilots Same event
CBS News
Hedges 1 of 14 claims Outlet record 66/100
FlyDubai flight to Israel diverted to Saudi Arabia after incident in cockpit Same event
South China Morning Post
Hedges 1 of 6 claims Outlet record 64/100
Flydubai plane traveling to Israel diverted to Saudi Arabia after alleged dispute between pilots Same event
Euronews
Hedges 2 of 19 claims Outlet record 60/100
Israel-bound commercial plane from Dubai diverted to Saudi Arabia after distress call Same event
The Hindu
Hedges 0 of 5 claims Outlet record 60/100
Israel-bound passenger plane makes emergency landing in Saudi Arabia Same event
The Guardian
Hedges 2 of 18 claims Outlet record 66/100
Israel-bound plane forced to make emergency landing after pilots’ brawl sparks hijack fears: reports Same event
New York Post
Hedges 1 of 10 claims Outlet record 66/100
Pilots start fighting on international flight sparking emergency: 'We saw blood' Same event
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 15 claims Outlet record 65/100
Passengers describe stabbing on Israel-bound plane Same event
BBC News
Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 68/100
Flydubai FZ1073 timeline: How the Israel-bound flight emergency unfolded Same event
Al Jazeera
Hedges 3 of 30 claims Outlet record 60/100
Tel Aviv-bound Flydubai flight diverted to Saudi Arabia after brawl between pilots: Israeli official Same event
Dawn
Hedges 1 of 10 claims Outlet record 72/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
18
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
11%
2 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
The Straits Times's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
346
Crime & Law
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-30 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Straits Times · 4076 article(s) · 5 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 5 correction(s)
2026-10-30
Number of residents leaving Oleshky still unclear, Kyiv says
2026-10-21
X Community Notes ‘failed’ to flag US election falsehoods, study says
2026-10-04
Tennessee prison chief resigns after failed execution
2026-10-03
US prison chief resigns after failed execution of death row inmate Christa Pike
2026-09-13
Russia hits Ukrainian-Polish border area, Kyiv says

Who wrote this

The Straits Times
2577 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The president of the Castilla-La Mancha region, Emiliano Garcia-Page, and Urda mayor Manuel Galan were among the officials who attended the service.
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Spanish village gathers for memorial Mass for train crash victims
🔮 Iran warns fresh US strikes would unleash ‘flames of war’ far beyond current conflict AI generated
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Iran warns fresh US strikes would unleash ‘flames of war’ far beyond current conflict
🔮 Rubio to host meeting of Indo-Pacific Quad, wrap up G20 gathering WASHINGTON, Oct 31 - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will host a meeting with the foreign ministers of Australia, India and Japan on Saturday, their third meeting this year, as plans take shape for a summit of the leaders of the four countries in Manila next month. The leaders' summit, slated to occur during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) conference in the Philippine capital November 15-18, will be the first since 2024, and the first for US President Donald Trump.
2026-10-31 · mixed framing · Rubio to host meeting of Indo-Pacific Quad, wrap up G20 gathering
🔮 "What was achieved, nobody, absolutely nobody, could even have imagined.
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Abuse survivors to press Church on accountability during pope's trip to South America
🔮 "Listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state will form an important part of this process, and I am open to them," he added.
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · UK PM Burnham says he is 'open' to formal apology for slavery, but rules out reparations
🔮 It is one of 35 races in the 100-member Senate that will set the tone for Trump's final two years in office.
2026-10-31 · mixed framing · US campaign for control of Congress enters final weekend
🔮 "In a few hours, all Ukrainian citizens evacuated from Oleshky together with a Ukrainian delegation will be on Ukrainian territory.
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Residents of Russian-controlled Ukrainian town arrive in Belarus
🔮 US ambassador to Poland, Tom Rose, warned all sides: “Don’t take any action that could provoke violence or further escalation.”
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Polish President calls crisis talks after court stand-off
🔮 Lula supporters, shocked by right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro's first-round lead, quickly mobilized as the prospect sank in that the Bolsonaro clan could return to power.
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · When buses stopped running on Brazil election day, 'Lula's Army' grabbed their car keys
🔮 Egypt fears escalation in Iran war would be more destructive, foreign minister says MANAMA, Oct 31 -
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Egypt fears escalation in Iran war would be more destructive, foreign minister says
Also by The Straits Times
Spanish village gathers for memorial Mass for train crash victims
2026-10-31 · The Straits Times
Poland's president accuses Tusk of forced takeover of country's top court
2026-10-31 · The Straits Times
Iran warns fresh US strikes would unleash ‘flames of war’ far beyond current conflict
2026-10-31 · The Straits Times
US campaign for control of Congress enters final weekend
2026-10-31 · The Straits Times
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 2577 articles by The Straits Times →

Topics

Flydubai Israel Israeli Saudi Arabia Tel Aviv

Subjects

Israeli NORP · 12× Saudi Arabia GPE · 7× Israel GPE · 6× Reuters ORG · 4× Tel Aviv GPE · 4× Dubai GPE · 3× Flydubai ORG · 3× Flightradar24 ORG · 2× Tabuk GPE · 2× UAE GPE · 2×

Narrative

Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister's office, told Reuters the incident was not believed to have been a hijacking, describing it as a "different incident". An airline spokesperson said the flydubai flight experienced an "incident" en route to Tel Aviv and diverted to Tabuk, where it landed safely.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-30
🔮 Reuters could not immediately verify the image.
2026-09-30 · The Straits Times
Israel-bound flight diverted to Saudi Arabia after brawl between pilots, Israeli official says · assertive framing

Claims (18 extracted, 2 hedged)

Israel-bound flight diverted to Saudi Arabia after brawl between pilots, Israeli official says JERUSALEM, Sept 30 - asserted
official → bind → pilots
A flight bound for Israel from the United Arab Emirates diverted to Saudi Arabia after transmitting emergency signals following a fight between the pilots, an Israeli official said on Wednesday. asserted
official → bind → Wednesday
Flydubai Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv diverted over Jordanian airspace towards Saudi Arabia, transmitting a general emergency signal and then another emergency signal that indicated possible unlawful interference several minutes later, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24. uncertain
that → divert → Flightradar24
The Boeing 737 plane, which Israeli media said had around 150 Israeli passengers on board, then again transmitted the initial general emergency signal before later landing at Tabuk airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia, the website said. asserted
website → say → Arabia
The aircraft's data appeared to show that it had suddenly and rapidly descended by nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds before the first emergency signal, Flightradar24 said. asserted
Flightradar24 → appear → signal
The emergency signals triggered a major security response in Israel, which has no official diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia, where the plane landed. asserted
plane → trigger → Arabia
The incident highlighted the potential risks on a route that has become popular among Israeli nationals since the UAE and Israel normalized ties 6 years ago. asserted
UAE → highlight → ties
Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister's office, told Reuters the incident was not believed to have been a hijacking, describing it as a "different incident". An airline spokesperson said the flydubai flight experienced an "incident" en route to Tel Aviv and diverted to Tabuk, where it landed safely. asserted
it → tell → Tabuk
All passengers were safe and accounted for, the spokesperson said, without providing any further details. asserted
spokesperson → account → details
An Israeli official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters the pilots had transmitted the emergency signals after getting into a physical altercation with each other. asserted
pilots → speak → other
It was not immediately clear if either pilot had intentionally transmitted the signals. asserted
pilot → transmit → signals
Yasmin Abu Kasis said her daughter Miriam, who was among the passengers on the flight, had told her that she had heard screaming and that a man holding a knife had forced one of the pilots onto the floor, and that there was blood everywhere. asserted
man → say → floor
Israeli media published a photo purportedly taken from inside the plane, which appeared to show a passenger's blood-soaked shirt. asserted
which → publish → shirt
Reuters could not immediately verify the image. uncertain
Reuters → verify → image
In a statement, the Israeli prime minister's office said the situation was "under control" and that all measures were being taken to bring the Israeli passengers back to Israel. Flydubai operates daily return flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv, a route that is popular among Israeli nationals. asserted
that → say → nationals
The flight path normally uses airspace over Saudi Arabia and Jordan. asserted
path → use → Arabia
It is not the first time a flight between Israel and the UAE has landed in Saudi Arabia. asserted
flight → land → Arabia
A flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in Riyadh in September 2025 due to a medical incident, Israeli media reported at the time. asserted
media → make → time
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support
Terms · Privacy · beta v2.0.0
Articles to 31 Oct 2026