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Akbar Novruz

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invited the Indian captain of a flydubai flight to visit Israel as a “guest of honour,” praising his actions during an alleged attempt by his co-pilot to bring down the Dubai-Tel Aviv passenger aircraft.

Netanyahu spoke by phone on Saturday with Captain Smit Machchhar, who remains hospitalized after being injured during the September 30 incident aboard flydubai Flight FZ1073.

“You are a true hero of the brave peoples of India and Israel, and you are a hero of the entire world,” Netanyahu told Machchhar in a video of the conversation released by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office.

Netanyahu also said he wanted Machchhar and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to light a ceremonial flame at Israel’s Independence Day celebrations in May 2027, describing the role as one of the country’s highest honours and noting that it is usually reserved for Israeli citizens.

Under Israel’s established selection process, however, the prime minister does not have unilateral authority to choose the torch lighters. Candidates are selected through an advisory committee and subsequently approved through the designated ministerial process.

Machchhar was commanding the flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv when he was attacked inside the cockpit by his co-pilot. UAE investigators have said the co-pilot planned a “terrorist act” and attacked the captain with a crash axe kept inside the cockpit.

Despite suffering serious injuries, Machchhar managed to open the cockpit door, allowing others aboard the aircraft to intervene and overpower the attacker. Other pilots subsequently took control of the aircraft, which was diverted and landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

Machchhar later described the confrontation during his conversation with Netanyahu, saying the co-pilot had initially asked for time to pray.

“A lot of locals, they do pray, which is not out of the ordinary. While he was praying, out of respect, I was just looking at the front and not at the back,” he said.

Machchhar said he then suddenly felt a powerful blow to the back of his head.

“Suddenly, after I think I would say about four to five minutes, there was a big blow to the back of my head. My first thought was that there was catastrophic damage to the aircraft and something is not right.

“But then after that the blows kept coming one after the other. That’s when I realised that it’s not the aircraft, it’s the other guy who was in the cockpit with me.”

Although injured and with the aircraft rapidly losing altitude, Machchhar said he made a final effort to reach the cockpit door.

“I had that one last fight left in me,” he said.

“That’s when I pushed against everything. I gave everything that I had and just went for the door and opened the door, and thankfully people were waiting.”

The aircraft was subsequently brought under control and landed safely in Saudi Arabia. No passengers were killed in the incident.

Machchhar has also spoken with Modi from hospital. The Indian prime minister praised the captain’s courage and presence of mind during the incident.

Investigations into the attack and the circumstances surrounding the co-pilot’s employment and security screening remain ongoing.