- 7 minutes ago
On board FlyDubai Flight 1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Captain Smit Makkar thwarted a suspected mid-air terror plot when his Omani co-pilot allegedly attacked him with a sharp object at 35,000 feet. Despite suffering multiple stab wounds, the Indian captain opened the cockpit door, allowing passengers to intervene as the aircraft plummeted rapidly. Israeli officials and Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Captain Smit for saving 174 lives and averting a 9/11-like catastrophe. Captain Smit received initial treatment in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, before being moved to Abu Dhabi in stable condition. Global aviation experts, including Captain Sam Thomas of the Airlines Pilots Association of India, security analyst Saul Satka, and SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh, weighed in on the unprecedented cockpit breach. The discussions focused on insider aviation threats, pilot psychological screening, cockpit security locks, and an ongoing multi-nation investigation involving the UAE and Israel.
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NewsTranscript
00:01Indian pilot foils mid-air disaster.
00:07He fought to save 174 lives.
00:16The 30 second fight for control.
00:24When danger came from inside the cockpit.
00:33True hero who prevented another 9-11.
00:42We salute you Captain Smith.
00:51The hero of our skies.
00:55Good evening, you're watching news track with me, Maria Shakil.
00:58September 30th, 2026 will be edged in everyone's memory.
01:04What happened on board flight Dubai Flight 1073 flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv has left the world in a
01:10state of shock.
01:11A suspected terror attack at 35,000 feet.
01:14A cockpit turned into a battlefield and 174 passengers suddenly staring at a possibility of a catastrophe.
01:24On board, a fly Dubai flight bound for Israel.
01:28A pilot attacked the Indian captain stabbing him and reportedly trying to seize control of the aircraft.
01:35In those terrifying moments, Indian national captain.
01:40Captain Smith Marker fought back, opened the cockpit door and saved 174 lives.
01:46What could have turned into another 9-11 like tragedy in the skies was averted.
01:52But the chilling incident has once again raised a host of questions.
01:56What really happened on that flight?
01:59Was it an altercation, a terror plot or a suicide attempt?
02:03Did Captain Smith really help a 9-11 repeat?
02:09And most importantly, how safe is a passenger plane when the threat comes from inside the cockpit?
02:16Before I bring in the guests, here's a report.
02:31The memories of that date are still painfully fresh.
02:37A coordinated series of four terrorist attacks by Al-Qaeda against the United States.
02:42Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center.
02:45A third hit the Pentagon.
02:49And nearly 3,000 people were killed.
02:5625 years later, history nearly repeated itself.
03:02At 35,000 feet, a fly Dubai Airlines cockpit turned into a battleground.
03:08A pilot stabbed a plane plunging thousands of feet down in a matter of seconds.
03:14And suddenly, 174 lives were hanging in the balance.
03:20But in those terrifying seconds, an Indian pilot, Captain Smith Machar, fought back.
03:26According to Israeli officials and witness accounts, a violent confrontation broke out inside the cockpit
03:32after the Omani co-pilot allegedly attacked Captain Smith with a sharp object.
03:38The Indian captain was stabbed multiple times and left bleeding.
03:42Yet he did something that may have saved every life on board.
03:45Despite his injuries, Captain Smith managed to open the cockpit door.
03:52India today has accessed a new video from his flight, where Captain Smith is heard saying that he can't squeeze
03:58his hand.
04:10We have also accessed another video showing a pilot being handcuffed and pinned down.
04:15However, India today cannot independently confirm that the man seen in the video is the Omani co-pilot.
04:23Israel has described the incident as an attempted jihadist terror attack.
04:27Israeli officials say the attacker tried to take control of the Israel-bound flight and crash it.
04:32You have the possibility of having another 9-11 and an Israeli passenger, a civilian.
04:39I met this guy. He's an incredible hero.
04:43This young man just acts with incredible, incredible heroism and saves the day along with the Indian pilot who was
04:52there
04:52and the others who came to help.
04:56Israel has also called the Indian pilot a hero, saying that they are forever indebted to him.
05:02You won't sleep? No.
05:05Prime Minister Modi too has praised the wounded Indian pilot, saying that he prevented another 9-11.
05:40That it was a
05:40that Hindustani has saved us from 9-11.
05:47For every country, the truth of Smith will be filled with us from the government.
05:58But a day after the incident, the biggest questions remain unanswered.
06:02Was this a terror attack or a suicide attempt?
06:05What drove a pilot to allegedly turn on his own captain and try to seize control of a passenger aircraft?
06:11The suspect has been identified by Israeli officials as an Omani national.
06:15The UAE has ordered a probe into the Fly Dubai incident and to investigate the possibility of a terror link.
06:22UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Naihan has spoken to the Israeli Prime Minister.
06:28The Mossad too has joined the probe.
06:31Then there is another unanswered question.
06:33Was Iran involved?
06:36Netanyahu has said that it is too early to determine whether Iran had any role.
06:40But he has also claimed that the co-pilot underwent, and I quote,
06:44Islamist radical indoctrination.
06:46All of this also brings us to a bigger question.
06:49Has aviation safety across the globe also gone for a toss?
06:52Needless to say, this is bigger than one cockpit, bigger than one pilot, and bigger than one flight.
06:59Because on September 11, 2001, the world learned what a plane could become in the hands of terrorists.
07:07And 25 years later, the world was reminded that the most secure cockpit in the world can still become a
07:13battleground
07:14if the threat is sitting in the pilot's seat.
07:16Vira Report, India Today.
07:25And the Ministry of External Affairs has given a health update on Captain Smith.
07:30In fact, it says that after receiving initial treatment in Saudi Arabia's Tabuk, the captain has now been shifted to
07:37Abu Dhabi for further medical attention.
07:41And India's ambassador in UAE met Captain Smith in the hospital and inquired about his well-being.
07:47His health is said to be stable.
07:52So this is the update which has come in.
07:55Let me bring in the guests who are joining me now.
07:57Joining me on the show tonight, Captain Sam Thomas, who is the president of Airlines Pilots Association of India.
08:04We also have Saul Satka, who is security analyst and an author who's joining me from Tel Aviv.
08:10Captain Thomas, post 9-11, the cockpit almost became a fortress.
08:17But has the threat simply shifted outside the aircraft to the airspace itself?
08:24And are we defending the wrong perimeter, one would say now?
08:29Too early to say that.
08:31Firstly, whatever we learn from every incident is implemented in such a manner that in a phased manner, the whole
08:39world can sort of, you know, accomplish those tasks.
08:45And to be brutally honest, if a pilot decides to become a renegade character, then there is very little you
08:56can do.
08:56And I can't think of anything that you can do to prevent such a character, though this is really not
09:03the first time that it's happening.
09:05It happened in the Egypt air incident.
09:07It happened with the German wings.
09:09It happened with the Malaysian 370.
09:11And it did happen in a Chinese airliner, which is not yet proven.
09:17So this is not the first time that it's happening.
09:19And maybe it's not the last time it's happening.
09:22The fearful factor is that there is very little you can do if the pilot himself decides to, you know,
09:34become a terrorist.
09:37So that's where we are at the moment.
09:40Yes. And, you know, 9-11 was about weaponizing aircraft.
09:44In this particular case, of course, it's a multi-nation probe, which is ongoing.
09:50And only then we'll know the truth.
09:53But here is the prime minister of Israel, who has clearly said that an Indian prevented 9-11 like terror
10:00attack.
10:01So a possibility of that cannot be ruled out.
10:05Very true. It's exactly the the what it reminds us is of United 93.
10:13The passengers tried to take over that airplane.
10:16Probably if they had 45 seconds to one minute more, they would have succeeded.
10:20But unfortunately, that was not to be.
10:23And here we saw the calmness of the passengers, the discipline of the passengers, the extraordinary effort of Smith.
10:33And let me remind you that the enormity of the situation is such that the plane is plummeting at about
10:4110,000 feet per minute down.
10:44In fact, in excess of 10,000 feet per minute and reaching the speed of sound that if you yank
10:50the control and try to recover it, the plane will break into two.
10:54So he has very gently come out of this dive.
10:58And the most important thing he did is open the door of the cockpit, letting the others come and defend
11:06in.
11:07And in addition to that, he's also squawked 7500, which is the unlawful interference code.
11:13And we have to say that in addition to the passengers, we believe that God also was on this airplane
11:21because too many miracles happened and everything came together at the right time.
11:27And therefore, all of them are safe at the moment.
11:30And we are also very heartened to hear something positive being said about Indian pilots.
11:36It's been a long time.
11:38Absolutely.
11:39I think I'll come to that in just a bit, Captain Thomas.
11:42I think that very fact that there is an Indian captain who saved lives has to be highlighted more because
11:49this is that moment and it's coming after a series of questions which have been raised with regards to the
11:56Indian aviation and particularly the functioning of the pilots.
11:58But let me go to Tel Aviv from where Saul Satka is joining us.
12:02The Israeli prime minister says that this is a 9-11 like attack, which has been prevented.
12:11What is it that Israel knew at this point, given that the investigation is still ongoing?
12:19But if that is the case, then this is also a case of intelligence failure.
12:25Yes, certainly it does appear to be an intelligence failure to some degree.
12:30The information coming out in the past hour is that the social media accounts of the attacking Omani pilots have
12:37been discovered by the UAE.
12:39And the UAE was having him on the plane as a pilot in contravention of an agreement with the Israelis
12:47that only UAE or other Israel aligned nations would provide the pilots to pilot their planes that fly towards Israel.
12:56And that doesn't have seemed to have been the case here.
13:00And this Omani pilot does seem to have a long and tortuous social media history praising Jihad and even apparently
13:08claiming to want to be an attacker himself.
13:11The idea that Fly Dubai would have a pilot with that kind of social media record on its books flying
13:16passengers just by itself is shocking.
13:19Many questions have to be asked about how that could possibly happen.
13:24So, Saul, let's try and understand about how, if there is a track record of that nature, as Israel is
13:35highlighting a social media trail which talks about his history, which is evidently about Jihad, then why wasn't he stopped?
13:48And if it is, although it's not clear if this is a terror attack or an attempt to bring down
13:57a plane, but what is becoming clear is that aviation is emerging as a battlefield.
14:06And particularly in a sensitive zone like West Asia, where a war is currently undergoing.
14:16Yes, absolutely.
14:17And this is quite unfortunate, but I think it does show the result of this, which is a mix of
14:23miracle, literal miracles.
14:25The fact that there were two pilots on this plane, supply pilots, who were able to take back control after
14:31both pilots were severely injured and unable to fly the plane is a miracle.
14:37That doesn't usually happen on short flights between Tel Aviv and Dubai.
14:41Very unusual.
14:41And the fact that the airplane suddenly came very, very close to breaking up in midair just by the dive
14:50that it was put into parts of the rudder came off.
14:52All of this is rather miraculous and heroic from many people involved, including, of course, pilot Smith, who, Captain Smith,
15:01without whom all the people on that plane would have been dead.
15:04But at the same time, it does, I think, give some kind of hope, because what did you see on
15:09that plane?
15:10You saw people from across what we hope one day will be the IMEC corridor connecting Europe to India via
15:16the Middle East, via Israel and Saudi Arabia and Dubai.
15:19Useful people from across that corridor, people from Europe, people from the Arab world, Jews and Arabs, Indians, all fighting
15:28together to overcome jihadism.
15:31In a way, the incident itself, as shocking as it is, is a hopeful metaphor for what can be in
15:38the region and beyond.
15:40Should this be seen as a wake-up call for revisiting global protocols, aviation safety protocols, the way 9-11
15:47fundamentally reshaped them?
15:51Yes, I would absolutely think so.
15:53We have seen a number of incidents like this over the past decades.
15:56The most tragic of all was what was almost certainly a similar case of a pilot trying to end his
16:03own life and taking the entire plane with and succeeding, which was MH370 back in Malaysia 11 years ago.
16:09That plane has never been found.
16:10There was the German wings.
16:11There was Egypt Air.
16:13There were a number of other cases that are suspected of the pilot doing the deed that brought the airplane
16:20down.
16:20In fact, at this point, airplanes are so safe, there's so much redundancy in the systems that it's very hard
16:26for the systems of the airplane to cause a crash.
16:29It's much more likely for the pilots, either by mistake, but more rarely and more catastrophically, potentially, deliberately to bring
16:37the plane down.
16:38That has to be dealt with.
16:39They have to have much stricter checks on pilots.
16:42They can't be jihadis.
16:44They certainly can't be posting on social media in favour of violent jihad.
16:48That would rule them out.
16:49They also need health checks.
16:50They need mental health assessments on a regular basis to ensure that the pilots flying the planes with hundreds of
16:56lives on board, depending on them, are not a risk to the people in the back of the plane.
17:01My last question to you before I let you go, what's the mood on ground in Israel, particularly after this
17:09incident?
17:11And what's the larger sentiment with regards to Captain Smith, the Indian origin pilot?
17:17Well, he is widely considered a hero in Israel.
17:20People are quite delighted at the results of the events yesterday.
17:24It's given the nation of Israel and people around the world a great sense of joy and relief to know
17:30that when faced with terror, the people, regular people, a plumber, a dentist, a banker.
17:37And, of course, the Indian pilot himself were able to stand up against this guy and save this aeroplane with
17:44seconds to spare, seconds to spare from disaster.
17:47And everyone understands, I think, that this was, number one, miraculous evidence of great heroism and people are very happy
17:54about it.
17:54Let me bring in Captain Thomas again.
17:56Captain Thomas, we were talking about how vulnerable perhaps the civilian aviation corridors are.
18:03And, you know, from what we know so far, does this incident fit into a pattern of evolving aviation linked
18:11threats, less about hijacking, but more about triggering chain reaction crisis?
18:19Well, the security analyst has sounded perfectly.
18:23As unpleasant as it is, we do have this renegade individuals from time to time who are probably religious fundamentalists
18:35or people with negative motivation.
18:38And you cannot write them off.
18:42What we are trying to suggest is that a psychological evaluation be done at the recruitment stage and constant monitoring
18:50be there.
18:51And that is the price that pilots would have to pay in future.
18:56But nevertheless, since it's going to be a step in the wrong, in the right direction with consequences that may
19:04be there, which are not so comfortable for the pilots, we still have to go with that.
19:10And this particular incident must not be seen as an argument between two pilots that went wrong.
19:17It is clearly an incident that was intended to end differently.
19:24And it was a pilot trying to take control and basically fatally attack the captain.
19:33And Captain Thomas, as the president of Airlines Pilots Association of India, have you had a chance to speak to
19:41the family of Captain Smith?
19:44No, we deliberately avoid that.
19:48And we've been speaking to his friends.
19:51And what we could gather is, since I don't know him personally, what we could gather is that this guy
19:57has been a superstar right through his career.
20:00From his student days, he has shown tremendous capability as a leader, as somebody who helps others and as a
20:09trainer.
20:10And his flying skills, of course, are there to be seen.
20:14And the way he's carried out this procedure is copybook.
20:19And you couldn't have done it better.
20:21But like I said, a lot of things fell in place.
20:24It was the passengers on board the airplane, the doctor who stabilized him.
20:32And the best part I heard about him from his friends were that these kind of injuries are not going
20:39to put the person down.
20:41He is going to be back in a jiffy.
20:42And that's exactly what we pray for.
20:45Absolutely.
20:45I think that's the right note to end this conversation.
20:47So, thank you so much for your time, Captain Thomas and Saul Satka, for analyzing the security implications there.
20:54And earlier today, I spoke to the SpiceJet CEO Ajay Singh, who was also Captain Smith's former boss.
21:02He has praised the Indian captain who was at the controls of the Dubai flight.
21:09I'm leaving you with this conversation.
21:10Thanks for watching.
21:16Joining me now is the CMD of SpiceJet, in fact, the former boss of Captain Smith, Ajay Singh.
21:24Ajay Singh, thank you for your time.
21:26The pilot spent 11 years with the SpiceJet.
21:30Today, the prime minister says that he's an Indian who prevented 9-11 like tragedy.
21:37Here is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling him a hero.
21:43As someone who has been part of the aviation sector for several years, how do you look at the valor
21:50of Captain Smith today?
21:53I think it's a moment of extreme great pride for all of us, not only in SpiceJet, but in India.
22:00Smith actually went well beyond, you know, normal levels of courage that a human being can show in the situation.
22:08And really, really did his duty by his passengers.
22:11Because, you know, one of the things that pilots are trained to do is to protect the lives of those
22:16that they carry in their plane.
22:18And Smith did that absolutely brilliantly.
22:20Just imagine a plane just descending so quickly and with, you know, a knife wounds on your head, on your
22:28arm and on your body.
22:30And when you're bleeding profusely and the plane is just dropping in that moment to have the presence of mind
22:36and the courage to open that the cockpit door.
22:41Absolutely incredible. You should also know that, you know, that cockpit door actually opens only when a pilot opens it.
22:48And the latch is actually on the side of the co-pilot.
22:51So this guy who was attacking him, that latch was actually on his side.
22:55And for Smith to be able to in a, you know, grievously injured state to be able to open that
23:02cabin door saved all those lives.
23:04And as the Prime Minister has rightly pointed out, it's not just the lives of the passengers on that flight
23:11alone.
23:12The plane could have been used like a bomb, like a 9-11 type situation.
23:17And so it's, you know, we are just incredibly proud that he did, Smith did his duty.
23:24Okay, let me ask, you know, what really changed after 9-11?
23:29Post 9-11, global airspace was shut down, flights were grounded, security protocols were rewritten.
23:38And the aviation became almost like a frontline security, like never before.
23:44Almost like a frontline security domain overnight.
23:48After this near catastrophe, Mr. Singh, what do you think changes now?
23:56Because once again, the security protocols in the aviation sector are in the spotlight.
24:04I think, you know, we need to be much more concerned about what happens in the cockpit.
24:10The presumption always has been that, look, the pilots are the protectors.
24:15The crew really protects the passengers on board.
24:19But what happens when the protector turns predator?
24:21What do you do there?
24:23So I think it's extremely important to, you know, figure out what the mental condition is of a pilot flying
24:33a plane.
24:33So you do psychometric analysis and so on when you get the pilot into your airline.
24:38But after that, is there a regular test that's happening?
24:41Are we in this, you know, very radicalized environment?
24:46Is it that we are actually checking to see that the pilots are in a good mental condition when they're
24:52flying and are responsible for so many lives?
24:55You know, after this nightmare, where do you think the security should now turn to airline systems, emergency protocols?
25:04And how do you then define institutional accountability here?
25:13You know, I think I think aviation has been an extremely safe mode of travel and most of what is
25:18being done is going well.
25:19But perhaps there is this new dimension of this uncertainty in terms of radicalization and mindset and so on.
25:29So I think much more work needs to be done on those issues.
25:34Yes, the multi-nation investigation has begun.
25:38What do you think the probe must answer?
25:41What are the thoughts that you have?
25:43And what are the questions that you have on your mind right now that the probe must answer?
25:50I think it must answer how this particular pilot, this co-pilot actually got to be in that airline and
25:59how exactly he felt that he was so radicalized and nobody knew.
26:05That is something that they have to answer because it came from within.
26:10Is it that did he have a knife really?
26:14And did he did he use that knife on on Smith?
26:17You know, that's something that we need to know.
26:19And if he had a knife, why was he allowed to carry a knife on board?
26:23So that's something else that they need to see.
26:27And this whole process of the cabin door, I think in an exception, you should be able to open that
26:33cockpit door from the outside.
26:38The fact that that's, you know, that was also actually supposed to be a security precaution that if there's a
26:45potential hijacker out, you shouldn't, you, you, you, he still can't get into the cockpit.
26:50But what happens if there is somebody dangerous in the cockpit itself?
26:53So those are questions that will have to be answered.
26:57Absolutely.
26:58You know, over the last few months, Indian aviation has faced a lot of questions and very serious ones.
27:04You have had the episode of Air India pilot having been tested positive for drugs.
27:12Then there is this incident where you have an Indian pilot being hailed world over as a hero.
27:20What do you see this moment defined as?
27:24Because this is a very defining moment for the Indian aviation sector.
27:29I think it's an incredible moment.
27:32India is proud today because an Indian has displayed such valor and prevented such a massive tragedy from happening.
27:38I think it's absolutely appropriate for the Prime Minister to commend this pilot and to be proud of his deeds.
27:47So as Indians, I think we all, this is our moment and we should all be, not hesitate to be
27:53proud.
27:55Okay, my last question to you. I know you're in the middle of too many things, Ajay Singh.
27:58What changes, what changes after this near catastrophe, according to you?
28:06I think much more analysis of who goes into that cockpit.
28:11Do we have enough processes in place to constantly monitor the psychology and mindset of the people who are given
28:20important tasks in aviation?
28:22It's not only pilots, it's also engineers, people who have the ability to impenal the safety of an aircraft.
28:30I think that will certainly need to be changed and monitored much more closely.
28:37Addressing CMD of SpiceJet, really appreciate your time.
28:42Thank you for joining us and sharing your views.
28:44Thank you for joining us and sharing your views.