Air Force Personnel Recount Moment They Realized Flydubai Jet Was Hijacked

An Israeli Air Force image identification officer, identified as Lieutenant N., recounted the tense moments last week when a Flydubai aircraft transmitted a distress signal. Initially, he treated it as a potential system malfunction, but after a drastic altitude change and confirmation that the plane was headed for Israel, he escalated the alert. "When I understood that the plane was destined to reach Israel, I alerted the control room," he stated. The situation intensified when a second distress signal indicated a hijacking. "It became a signal of a hijacked plane. I told myself this is something unusual," Lt. N. recalled, noting the shift from a possible technical issue to a high probability of a hijacking, which then initiated the Air Force's response.

Upon receiving the hijacking signal, fighter jets were scrambled within seconds. "We decided within a few seconds to escalate the report and scramble fighter jets," he said. The team prepared for all scenarios amidst significant uncertainty, as information was inconsistent and the plane began to turn away from Israel, adding to the confusion. "During the uncertainty, we sat with the team for about half an hour doing a kind of war game," he added.

As the plane diverted towards Saudi Arabia, Israeli media reported pilot disputes, but the tension remained high in the Air Force command center. Lt. N. expressed continued concern even after the plane landed in Saudi Arabia, emphasizing the worry about Israeli passengers on a civilian aircraft landing in a Muslim country outside a civilian airport. "Until we received information that the plane had landed safely and the incident was closed, nothing was okay," he stated.

Reserve Captain A., Director of Air Traffic, described initiating immediate airspace clearance for the scrambled fighter jets once the incident was classified as extraordinary. This involved rerouting numerous civilian, agricultural, and military flights. "We call it moving to a sterile area, because it could be that later it will reach us, and we need to plan ahead," he explained, noting that in a more severe scenario, all takeoffs might have been halted. He added that in over a decade of service, he had never closed the skies due to such a significant event.