- Published
The pilot who was stabbed on an Israel-bound flight on Wednesday has been identified as Indian national Capt Smit Machchhar.
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who → publish → Machchhar
Capt Machchhar was attacked by another pilot onboard a Flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, forcing the plane to divert to Saudi Arabia.
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Machchhar → attack → Arabia
The captain, who has been hailed as a "true hero" by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was taken to a hospital in Tubak City, north-western Saudi Arabia, where he remains in a stable condition according to the Indian embassy in Riyadh.
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he → hail → Riyadh
Writing on X, Netanyahu said Capt Machchhar "saved the lives of 174 people" and prevented "a catastrophic mid-air disaster".
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Machchhar → write → disaster
What do we know about Capt Machchhar?
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we → know → Machchhar
Capt Machchhar grew up in India's Mumbai city, where his parents still live.
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parents → grow → city
He joined SpiceJet, an Indian airline, in 2011 before moving to Dubai eventually.
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He → join → Dubai
He was an experienced pilot by 2022 when he joined Flydubai.
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he → join → Flydubai
He has more than 9,750 hours of flying experience, including more than 6,400 hours as pilot-in-command, according to his LinkedIn profile.
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He → have → profile
His former employer SpiceJet issued a statement calling Machchhar a "hero" who had saved "countless lives".
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who → issue → lives
Last year, Capt Machchhar spoke about how he started flying and his experiences as a pilot on a podcast called Bona-Fide Banter.
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he → speak → podcast
Aviation, he said, was "never a childhood dream".
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he → say → ?
When he was around 19, he joined a management course, planning to work with his family's business.
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he → join → business
But then he came across an aviation seminar and "the bug bit [him]," he added.
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he → come → him
Machchhar also spoke about how, when he wore his pilot's uniform, he was "no-nonsense" and thought "about work 100%".
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he → speak → work
But unlike his younger days, he added, he now placed a greater value on having a healthy work-life balance and spending time with family.
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he → add → family
"Give personal life equal importance - it will help you fly longer," he advised.
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he → give → importance
He also detailed challenges he had faced in the air, including when a passenger went into early labour and the crew worked together to ensure the baby was born safely.
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baby → detail → labour
"In aviation terms, I was lucky to grow up with people who helped me be the pilot that I am today," he said, crediting senior pilots with teaching him how to face stressful situations.
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he → grow → situations
At the time of the conversation, Capt Machchhar said that no plane he'd flown had had to make an emergency landing.
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he → say → landing
He had, however, faced medical emergencies and minor aircraft issues causing delays.
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He → face → delays
He said delays were "not my problem.
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delays → say → ?
As long as you're walking out of the aircraft [safely], that's what I want."
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I → walk → what
Indian social media has been awash with praise for Capt Machchhar since his identity emerged, with commenters calling him a hero.
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commenters → emerge → him
Snippets from the podcast have also gone viral.
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Snippets → go → podcast
What happened on the Flydubai flight?
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What → happen → flight
Flydubai's flight FZ1073 took off from Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates at 03:05 GMT (07:05 local time) en route to Ben Gurion Airport in Israel.
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flight → take → Israel
The flight was carrying at least 150 people, with Netanyahu saying "almost all" passengers were Israeli.
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passengers → carry → people
Data from flight tracking website Flightradar24 shows the plane made a rapid descent over Saudi Arabia around two and a half hours after take-off, dropping more than 17,000ft (5,000m) in less than two minutes at around 05:21.
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plane → show → 05:21
Minutes later, the plane signalled an emergency code - squawk 7700 - before switching it to a squawk 7500 code, which indicates a hijacking.
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which → signal → hijacking
At 05:40, the plane - which had briefly entered Jordanian airspace - looped back into Saudi Arabia, where it later started its manual descent for landing.
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it → enter → landing
Less than an hour later, the plane returned to squawk 7700.
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plane → return → squawk
Initial local media reports cited Israeli officials as saying a fight had broken out between two pilots.
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fight → cite → pilots
But speaking on Wednesday after the incident, Netanyahu confirmed later reports that one pilot had stabbed the other before "apparently trying to crash" the plane.
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pilot → speak → plane
He said an Israeli passenger told him "the plane went into a spin and began to descend" before the passenger and a crew member broke into the cockpit and overpowered the "pilot who had carried out the stabbing".
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who → say → stabbing
The plane was diverted to Tabuk Airport in north-eastern Saudi Arabia and touched down at 06:58, according to location data.
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plane → divert → data
The stabbed pilot, who is in a stable condition according to the Indian embassy in Saudi Arabia, was later identified as Capt Machchhar.
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who → stab → Machchhar
Modi and Trump praise Capt Machchhar
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Machchhar "showed immense courage and an unwavering resolve to protect the lives of others" despite being seriously injured.
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Machchhar → praise → others
"His valour helped save hundreds of lives and avert a great tragedy
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valour → save → tragedy
," he wrote in a post on X, adding that he hoped for the pilot's speedy recovery.
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he → write → recovery
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
