Flydubai pilot on cockpit attack: ‘I was fighting for my life’

The Indian pilot stabbed by his co-pilot in an apparent attempt to crash a Flydubai aircraft recounted how he fought to save the 182 people on board.

Airline Capt. Smit Machchhar told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a video call released by the prime minister’s office Friday that he was fighting for his life during the altercation after being seriously injured.

“When I was on the ground, I realized that the aircraft is going down,” he said in Hindi, according to a translated transcript from The Associated Press . “And I told myself, ‘This is the last push, Smit. The door is right there.’ And I was still getting hit, but I opened the door. And everyone else who helped was just as incremental to this effort.”

In an earlier social media post , Modi praised the Indian pilot, saying he showed “the highest form of courage.”

“Without fearing for his own life, he fought valiantly and prevented another 9/11 like attack from happening,” the prime minister wrote, adding, “140 crore Indians salute Captain Smit and are praying for his well-being.”

Machchhar, who has been flying for 17 years, opened the door to the cockpit after the plane plunged thousands of feet. The plane was diverted from its original destination of Tel Aviv, Israel, to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, for an emergency landing.

The pilot was admitted to a hospital in Tabuk for initial treatment before being transported to Abu Dhabi for “continued medical attention and recovery,” according to Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs.

“We once again salute Captain Smit Machchhar’s valour and courage,” Jaiswal said in a statement shared on social media . “We also convey our deep appreciation for the admiration and support he has received from across the world for his act of gallantry.”

The attacker, an Omani national, was arrested in Saudi Arabia and is being interrogated there, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A motive behind the attack is not yet known.