Mother on Flydubai flight recounts terror attack and captain's heroic actions

On Flydubai flight FZ1073 to Tel Aviv, a co-pilot identified as Hamam Al Hammami struck captain Smit Machchhar with an axe and attempted to seize control. Passengers, including four Israeli men, wrestled the attacker to the floor while the captain, despite a head wound, opened the cockpit door and regained control of the aircraft. Lital Hirschl-Shahar, seated in the tenth row with her four daughters, recounted the terror of not knowing which child to hug first and told them the situation was "in God's hands."

All 174 passengers, among them four Americans, survived the 14,000-foot plunge. The captain’s actions earned him a guest-of-honour invitation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who praised his heroism.