By David Israel • September 30, 2026
Jerusalem, 30 September, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli passengers aboard a Flydubai flight that an Omani co-pilot attempted to hijack and crash on Wednesday described terrifying moments as the plane plunged thousands of feet with no word from the cockpit, before it made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
“The plane plunged from 30,000 feet to 15,000 feet in one minute,” one of the roughly 150 Israelis on board said after landing in Tabuk, in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
“Throughout the flight, nobody told us anything because nobody knew anything. We didn’t know whether there was a pilot, whether the pilot was alive, or whether there was any contact with Israeli authorities. We had no cell reception, no phone service, no internet, nothing,” the passenger said.
Only after landing did one fellow passenger manage to get reception and help others set up eSIMs – digital SIM cards that can be activated remotely – the passenger recounted. “Everyone here paid for their own eSIM and started getting updates from their families.”
Flight FZ1073, a Boeing 737 MAX 8 carrying 174 passengers, was en route from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the co-pilot, an Omani national, tried to take control of the aircraft.
He stabbed the captain, a citizen of the United Arab Emirates, before crew members forced their way into the cockpit and regained control of the plane.
“Indications are mounting that this was the act of a terrorist rather than a mental health incident,” an Israeli diplomatic source said, adding that information was awaited from Saudi Arabia.
Data from the flight-tracking service Flightradar24 showed the plane transmitting emergency code 7700 while over Jordan, followed shortly afterward by 7500, the international code signaling unlawful interference such as a hijacking. The signal was later restored to 7700.
The aircraft dropped roughly 15,000 feet in about a minute and communication with it was lost before it reversed course and landed safely at Tabuk Airport.
Israel scrambled fighter jets as a precaution, while Ben Gurion Airport, the flight’s intended destination, maintained normal operations. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz held a security consultation on the incident.
The co-pilot’s motive has not yet been established.
“All the Israelis are returning; no one is being left behind for interrogation there,” the diplomatic source said. “They are currently being debriefed, and all will return. We have personnel [forces] on the ground there.”
Israeli officials are coordinating the passengers’ return, with both civilian and military aircraft being considered.
Transportation Minister Miri Regev has demanded an investigation into whether Flydubai violated aviation agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, which normalized relations under the 2020 Abraham Accords. Under those agreements, only pilots from countries with which Israel has diplomatic relations are allowed to land in Israel.
Israel and Oman do not have diplomatic ties, though the possibility that the co-pilot is a dual citizen of another country has not been ruled out.
Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have diplomatic relations either, but the kingdom allows overflights to and from Israel.
