NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday spoke to India’s “hero” pilot Captain Smit Machchhar, who is undergoing treatment in the UAE, after being injured while resisting his attacker, a flydubai co-pilot.Machchhar, who was attacked by his Omani co-pilot, struggled to open the cockpit door, which led the passengers, mainly Israeli security forces and air marshals, onboard to subdue the attacker.Captain Smit gave details of his experience and what gave him courage during the incident, which is being seen as a possible hijack attempt.PM Modi applauded his bravery and wished him a quick recovery.The flydubai flight issued an emergency alert and abruptly descended thousands of feet as the incident unfolded. Israel scrambled warplanes amid concerns about a possible hijacking.The plane carrying passengers from the flight landed Wednesday evening in Israel, however, it was not clear what motivated the attack. “We are guarding the pilot,” one person said in Hebrew. In another video, passengers wept and cried out as the aircraft shook.Those who intervened “saved many lives and prevented a major disaster,” Netanyahu said, adding that Saudi Arabia arrested a pilot whose identity was not immediately shared by authorities.Saudi Arabia had no immediate comment. The plane’s captain and first officer were injured, according to a statement by Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, carried by state-run Alekhbariya TV.Just another pilot until a day ago, Machchhar became the toast of India, and the world, as acclamations and tributes streamed in Thursday from US President Donald Trump, PM Modi, President Droupadi Murmu and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, among others, for putting his life at risk to avert a mid-air tragedy.The knife attack on Smit by the co-pilot inside the cockpit had forced the flight carrying 174 people from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Israel, to make an emergency landing in Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Smit, 39, is recovering in Abu Dhabi.
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Trump hailed Smit as a “hero” for fighting off the knife attack and opening the cockpit door to call for help. “The pilot, in bad shape, had the sense to open the door. In a way he was a hero,” Trump said. Flyers helped overpower the co-pilot and a reserve flight crew travelling as passengers landed the plane safely.“In the face of the gravest danger… he showed immense courage and an unwavering resolve to protect the lives of others,” Modi wrote on X. The PM said he had spoken with Smit’s parents and wife. “Smit’s bravery fills every Indian with pride,” the PM said.School friend Bhavin Jethva remembered Smit as “straightforward, bindass”. Smit’s classmates at a flying school in New Zealand went to him whenever a subject got difficult. As a captain and line trainer, he spoke to loaders and catering staff with the same respect as fellow pilots, friends said.
