A Passenger Learned to Pull the Controls From Air Crash Investigation — and Helped Save a FlyDubai Flight

October 1 (IT Home) — On 30 September local time, FlyDubai flight FZ1073 (a Boeing 737 MAX) was the scene of an attack in the cockpit while flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv.

During the incident, an Israeli passenger, Yaniv Hayoun, and other passengers forced their way into the cockpit to prevent a disaster and helped subdue the attacker — the co-pilot, who was later arrested on suspicion of terrorism. Hayoun then briefly took the controls and helped bring the aircraft out of its dive. After other pilots on board took over, the flight landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

There were 174 people on board when the incident occurred. According to multiple media reports, the co-pilot stabbed the Indian-born captain, Smit Machchhar, after which the aircraft went into a steep descent. Reuters said the plane dropped nearly 14,000 feet (about 4,267 metres) in less than 30 seconds; the specific flight data still awaits confirmation by the investigation.

After the aircraft landed safely, Hayoun and other passengers returned to Israel. On 30 September he was received at Ben Gurion Airport by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, still wearing the bloodstained clothes he had on during the incident. Netanyahu praised him as a hero and said his actions had prevented a huge disaster.

When questioned by Netanyahu and others, Hayoun said that after he and other passengers entered the cockpit, they pulled the attacker away from the controls. The aircraft was still flying abnormally, so he grabbed the controls and pulled back, bringing the plane back to level flight.

Netanyahu then asked whether he had ever learned to fly a plane. Hayoun replied that he knew how to pull the control column because he was a regular viewer of Air Crash Investigation. The exchange was later recorded in a video released by Netanyahu’s office.

IT Home notes: Air Crash Investigation, also known as Mayday, is a documentary series based on real aviation accidents, near-disasters and hijackings, reconstructing events through dramatisations, accident reports and related testimony. The programme is produced by the Canadian company Cineflix Productions and has been broadcast in many countries and regions.

From the available reports, however, Hayoun did not single-handedly recover and land the aircraft using only what he had learned from the programme. Two other off-duty pilots were on board; after the attacker was subdued, they took over the aircraft and made a safe emergency landing. Of the 174 passengers and crew, no one other than the injured captain and the arrested co-pilot was hurt. The exact cause of the incident is still under investigation.