In a shocking mid-air incident, Indian Captain Smit Machchhar of Flydubai Flight FZ1073 has revealed how he fought for his life and struggled to save 174 people after being stabbed by his own co-pilot inside the cockpit.

The Boeing 737 MAX 8 was flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday, September 30, when a violent confrontation erupted in the cockpit. The aircraft suddenly plunged nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds, turning a routine flight into a terrifying emergency.

Despite suffering serious injuries, Captain Machchhar realized that the aircraft was descending dangerously and that he had to act.

“I was lying on the floor injured but I told myself to go for one last push to open the door from inside,” he recalled while speaking to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

His determination was driven by one thought:

“I was of course fighting for my own life but at the same time I knew I was not going to let others die.”

The injured captain managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to intervene. The attacker was overpowered, and two reserve pilots onboard eventually took control and safely landed the aircraft at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia.

During his conversation with the captain, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised his extraordinary courage and selflessness.

“You did not care for your life, you cared for the lives of all the travellers,” Modi told him, acknowledging how Machchhar had acted despite his injuries.

The Prime Minister also said that the captain’s courage, patience and quick decision-making had saved many lives.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also praised the Indian pilot, describing him as “a true hero.”

Netanyahu said Machchhar “fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker,” helping prevent what he described as a potential catastrophic mid-air disaster.

The bravery of the passengers who intervened also played a crucial role. Israeli passenger Yaniv Hayun reportedly entered the cockpit and helped stabilize the aircraft by pulling back on the controls before the reserve pilots took over.

The incident left Captain Machchhar seriously injured. He was initially hospitalized in Saudi Arabia and later airlifted to Abu Dhabi for further treatment.

Indian Ambassador to the UAE Deepak Mittal, who visited the captain and his family, offered a reassuring update.

“He was speaking openly, smiling and laughing, which was a great relief for us and, above all, for his family,” Mittal said, adding that the captain’s morale was high.

Even while recovering, Machchhar remains determined to return to good health.

“I am not looking at this wound like a wound because that would make my recovery even more difficult,” he said.

“I am looking at it as a journey which is slowly going on and will take time but I am confident that the recovery will be there and I will become fit and healthy again.”

Meanwhile, authorities in the UAE have launched an investigation to determine the circumstances and possible motive behind the attack, including whether it was connected to terrorist activity.

From a bloodied cockpit floor to the desperate effort to unlock a reinforced cockpit door, Captain Smit Machchhar’s actions have become the defining story of this extraordinary aviation emergency.

His words capture the determination behind the struggle: he was fighting for his own survival, but he refused to give up on the lives of everyone aboard.

Aviation is built on training, procedures and teamwork. But in this extraordinary emergency, a badly injured captain’s determination to act became a crucial part of the fight to save 174 lives.