Pilot who 'never planned to fly': Mumbaikar Smit Machchhar's journey from textile course to saving 180 lives on flydubai flight

MUMBAI: Captain Smit Machchhar never grew up dreaming of flying planes. In fact, when he was 19, his career path appeared to be taking him in an entirely different direction — towards his family's textile business.An aviation seminar during a management course changed that.More than a decade later, the Mumbaikar found himself at the controls of a flydubai Boeing 737 MAX during one of the most terrifying moments of his flying career — after his co-pilot allegedly attacked him in the cockpit as the aircraft was carrying 174 passengers from Dubai to Tel Aviv.Despite being injured, Machchhar is reported to have fought back and helped prevent the aircraft from plunging further. The plane had dropped thousands of feet in a matter of seconds before passengers and crew intervened and the aircraft was eventually diverted to Saudi Arabia.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later identified Machchhar as the captain and praised his actions, saying he had helped prevent a major disaster.From textile engineering to cockpitMachchhar's journey into aviation was anything but conventional.In a podcast interview recorded around a year before the incident, he recalled that becoming a pilot was not a childhood ambition. After school, he initially enrolled in a textile engineering course because he expected to eventually contribute to his family's business.He later opted for a management course to prepare himself for the business.It was during that course, when he was just 19, that he attended an aviation seminar."Unlike a lot of other aviators right now, aviation was not like a childhood dream," Machchhar said in the interview.The seminar changed his plans.His decision to enter aviation initially worried his mother."My mom was scared," he recalled, explaining that commercial aviation was far less familiar to people around him 15-17 years ago. His father, however, was more comfortable with his decision.Machchhar subsequently completed his commercial pilot training in New Zealand before obtaining his Boeing 737 type rating at the Flight Safety Training Centre (FSTC) in Manesar, Gurgaon.From SpiceJet to flydubaiMachchhar joined SpiceJet in 2011 and spent more than a decade with the airline, eventually becoming a senior commander and Line Training Captain.According to his professional profile, he accumulated more than 9,500 flying hours with SpiceJet, including over 6,400 hours as pilot-in-command. As a Line Training Captain, he was responsible for training, assessing and mentoring other pilots while ensuring adherence to operational and safety procedures.He moved to flydubai in June 2022 as a direct-entry captain and has since been flying the Boeing 737 fleet.His profile lists more than 9,750 hours of flying experience and experience on the Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737 MAX 8/9.A senior pilot who had trained Machchhar previously described him as a "very decent and sober person" who was always willing to learn.Machchhar's brother is also a pilot with flydubai.The flight that plunged thousands of feetThe flydubai flight was carrying 174 passengers, including 166 Israeli citizens, when the incident unfolded.According to flight-tracking data, the Boeing 737 MAX descended from roughly 30,875 feet to 16,750 feet in just 29 seconds. Flightradar24 recorded an extreme descent rate of around 30,000 feet per minute.Reports said the Omani co-pilot attacked Machchhar with a knife. The captain was injured but managed to resist while the aircraft was in danger of losing control.Passengers and crew eventually entered the cockpit and subdued the attacker.The aircraft was then diverted and landed at Tabuk in Saudi Arabia. Two additional pilots who had been travelling as passengers were also on board and later took over the aircraft.The severity of the descent surprised aviation experts. Former United Airlines pilot and aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo said he was surprised the aircraft remained intact after the extreme manoeuvre, while aviation investigator Jeff Guzzetti said the aircraft had enough altitude left for the pilots to recover.The aircraft also reportedly suffered damage to its rudder during the descent.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Mumbai | Silver Rate in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai | Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Petrol Price in Mumbai | Diesel Price in Mumbai | CNG Price in Mumbai | LPG Price in MumbaiStay updated with the latest Mumbai news. Download the TOI App.