Flydubai Flight 1073 Captain Smit Machchhar has revealed how he fought to reopen the cockpit door after being attacked by his copilot as the Boeing 737 MAX 8 plunged toward the ground.
Speaking with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Machchhar said the copilot, identified as Hamam al-Hammami, asked to pray shortly before the attack.
“Out of respect, I was just looking at the front and not at the back,” Machchhar recalled.
Four or five minutes later, he was suddenly struck from behind with what he initially believed was a catastrophic blow to the aircraft.
Then the attacks continued.
“I realized that it’s not the aircraft, it’s the other guy who was in the cockpit with me,” Machchhar said.
According to UAE authorities, al-Hammami used the cockpit emergency crash axe to attack the captain and attempted to take control of the aircraft.
Badly injured and struggling to see, Machchhar then felt the aircraft sharply descending.
His first attempt to open the cockpit door was stopped by the attacker.
But as passengers screamed outside, the wounded captain realized he had one final chance.
“If I don’t do it, I’m going to die,” he recalled thinking.
Machchhar managed to reach the cockpit door and gave the handle a “short, quick twist,” opening it from the inside.
He explained that the cockpit door can be opened from inside using a twist mechanism, while those outside normally require a security code.
“My colleagues from outside were trying to put in the code, but the guy was not allowing to open the code,” Machchhar said.
Once the door opened, passengers rushed into the cockpit and helped overpower the attacker and regain control of the aircraft.
Passenger Yaniv Hayun also described the dramatic moments inside the aircraft. He said he entered the cockpit, found Machchhar lying against the door and saw the attacker bent over the controls.
Hayun grabbed al-Hammami by the neck and moved him away from the controls while other passengers restrained him.
He then looked through the cockpit window and saw the aircraft heading toward the ground. Hayun grabbed the controls and helped stabilize the aircraft until an off-duty pilot aboard the flight took over.
Flight 1073 eventually made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
Captain Machchhar survived the attack and is recovering from his injuries.
Prime Minister Netanyahu praised him as a hero, telling him: “You are a hero of Israel, you are a hero of India, and you are a hero of the entire world.”
The incident has raised serious questions about cockpit security, crew access procedures and how Flight 1073 was ultimately brought back under control after the violent cockpit attack.
