Mid-air stabbing, cockpit scrum and 'miracle' landing: Inside the flydubai flight

A plummet in the air, a scrum in the cockpit, and a miraculous landing is how eyewitnesses describe the flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, now described by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz as "a jihadist terror attempt".

Warning: This article contains graphic images.

On Wednesday, local time, a commercial flight with 174 people aboard had to divert to Saudi Arabia after one pilot stabbed the other and "apparently tried to crash the plane".

The Boeing 737, operated by a sister airline of Emirates, took off from Dubai International Airport but mid-flight plunged nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds.

Customers and crew who then entered the cockpit foiled a co-pilot's attempt to crash the aircraft, Israeli officials said, with a second pair of off-duty flydubai pilots landing the jet safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

Passenger uses TV knowledge to steer plane

Passenger Yaniv Hayoun was among the first to step into action.

Mr Hayoun said he and others pushed their way into the cockpit where he saw the unharmed pilot apparently trying to destroy the controls, Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported.

"The door apparently wasn't locked and we managed to open it somehow," Mr Hayoun told journalists.

"What made it difficult for us was the [other] pilot himself. He had been stabbed and was on the other side of the door."

Israeli officials later identified the injured pilot as Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, who managed to click the release to open the cockpit, letting the passengers in.

As people wrestled with the attacker, Mr Hayoun said he grabbed the controls and pulled them the way he had seen on television.

Then other crew members took over. Flydubai said the aircraft was secured by on-duty crew "who diverted and landed the aircraft safely".

Later, in a video released by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, the Israeli leader is shown at Ben Gurion Airport hugging Mr Hayoun.

"I see you and I see a lion — a big hero," Mr Netanyahu told Mr Hayoun, who was still wearing the blood-stained shirt he had on during the flight.

When asked by Mr Netanyahu whether he knew what he was doing, he answered: "I watch Air Crash Investigation, Mr Prime Minister."

Dentist, dad and sky marshals among flight's heroes

Another passenger in the scrum, Tzvika Manes, told Channel 12 it took many minutes to subdue the attacking pilot.

A third responder, dentist Shota Musayev, told journalists the passengers realised they had just seconds to take control of the plane before a "critical event".

He said they feared another attacker might be on the plane so "spread a few more people inside the plane so that if something happened we would be able to simply take control".

Mr Musayev also attended to the injured pilot who was "praying the whole time … and I was afraid we would really lose him".

Among the passengers who intervened were members of Israeli security forces and sky marshals, according to a person familiar with a probe by Saudi Arabia and regional partners.

"This is something you do without thinking, just running to save your daughter's life, your family's life," said Asaf Rajuan, another passenger who helped restrain the attacker.

He spoke with a forehead still bloodied from the struggle and later told The New York Times there was a fear about where they would land.

"There was only desert below us," he added.

Plummet felt like 'massive turbulence'

Describing the flight's sudden plunge, Almog Italie said it felt like the plane was passing through "massive turbulence" before he realised the life-or-death struggle unfolding in the cockpit.

"It was dropping like for 20, 30 seconds, and then balanced, and then started dropping again, and balanced again, and then we saw that [there were] people in the front, directly [in front of] the cockpit," he said.

Mr Italie said the reserve crew soon "took over the airplane and balanced it".

"It was quite scary, but not for long," he said.

"Most of the passengers kept calm and were very supportive to each other.

"We landed in Saudi Arabia, which we got a very very warm welcome with a lot of medical staff and food and anything we needed, and we're waiting for the flight back to Tel Aviv."

Hours after landing in Tel Aviv, Mr Italie said: "It has been a long day. Luckily for us it's ended."

Terrified passenger felt 'not among the living'

Other passengers recounted their absolute fear as the incident took place.

Chaim Nazarovitz said the ordeal had been "very terrifying", adding for a moment he felt like he was "not among the living".

"We're going to die," passenger Naama Bershadski recalled thinking as she closed her eyes and prayed.

Miryam Shira Ohayon described the plane as "pretty much out of control" while the incident unfolded.

"It was really on the way to crashing and it was simply the resourcefulness of many people who took control of the co-pilot and neutralised him," she told reporters by speakerphone held up by her mother, who was waiting in Tel Aviv.

As they landed back in Israel, Lital Shachaf thanked God she was home.

"I just can say that it was a miracle," she said.

"It was awful, crazy, and we thank God that we survived it. We didn't think we will make it but thank God we are in Israel."