Israeli President Thanks Pilot Who Thwarted Hijacking, Invites Him to Jerusalem
Summarized from i24NEWS English by baba
Israeli President Isaac Herzog thanked Captain Smit Machchhar for thwarting a terrorist hijacking of a Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv on September 30. Despite being stabbed by his co-pilot, Machchhar enabled passengers to subdue the attacker, and the plane landed safely in Saudi Arabia. Herzog invited the recovering Indian pilot to Jerusalem and compared his bravery to historical Indian soldiers. UAE investigators confirmed the co-pilot planned to crash the plane into Ben Gurion Airport.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- President Herzog invited Captain Smit Machchhar to Jerusalem for his bravery in stopping a hijacking.
- Captain Machchhar was stabbed by his co-pilot on a Dubai to Tel Aviv Flydubai flight.
- The co-pilot intended to crash the plane into Ben Gurion Airport, UAE investigators found.
- Machchhar's actions allowed passengers and crew to subdue the attacker after he unlocked the cockpit.
- The flight landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, with other pilots at the controls.
- Herzog compared Machchhar's heroism to Indian soldiers who captured Haifa in World War I.
i24NEWS English publishes in English. The key points are summarized above. Read i24NEWS English’s full report from the link at the top of the page.
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