UAE says flydubai co-pilot attacked captain with cockpit axe on Flight 1073

The co-pilot of flydubai Flight 1073 struck the captain with the axe kept in the cockpit for emergencies and tried to seize control of the aircraft, the attorney general of the United Arab Emirates has said, describing the episode as a terrorist act. The remarks by Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi were carried by WAM, the Emirati state news agency, and reported by The Times of Israel, which said the co-pilot is Omani and the captain is Indian.

According to the Israeli broadcaster N12, citing WAM, the attorney general said the co-pilot had attempted to commit a terrorist act during the flight and had tried to take over the plane, while the question of motive is still under examination. The Jerusalem Post described the disclosure as the first details made public by Emirati prosecutors about the investigation, characterising the incident as an attempted terror attack.

What happened on the flight

The Times of Israel referred to the incident as a hijacking attempt and placed it on the Wednesday flight. A photograph caption published by The Jerusalem Post identifies the aircraft as a flydubai service travelling from the UAE to Israel that was diverted to Saudi Arabia after an emergency signal was issued. The same caption shows a separate plane, carrying the passengers who had been aboard the flydubai jet, landing at Ben Gurion International Airport in Lod, near Tel Aviv, on September 30, 2026.

The reports do not describe the sequence of events inside the cockpit beyond the attorney general's account: an assault with the emergency axe and an attempt to take the controls. None of the material describes injuries to the captain, the condition of the co-pilot, or what happened to him after the aircraft landed.

Who is speaking, and why it matters

The account comes from the UAE's top prosecutor, not from the airline or from aviation investigators. In the Emirates, statements of this kind are typically distributed through WAM, the official news agency, and both Israeli outlets that carried the details relied on WAM rather than on their own sourcing. That makes this, for now, the official Emirati version of events.

flydubai is a Dubai-based carrier. Its route between the Emirates and Israel is one of the commercial links that Israeli travellers use, which is why the incident has drawn close coverage in the Israeli press. In a separate item on the same live coverage, The Times of Israel reported that Katz said he had ordered cargo planes to fly to Dubai to collect luggage belonging to the Israeli passengers, an indication that bags were left behind when travellers were moved onto another aircraft.

Why an axe was in the cockpit

Readers unfamiliar with aviation may be surprised that a weapon of this kind was within reach of the flight crew. As The Times of Israel explained, airlines are generally obliged to keep a crash axe in the cockpit. It is a safety tool, intended to let the crew smash through a window to get out or pry open a panel to reach a fire. In this case, according to the attorney general, it was the item used in the assault.

The investigation

Al Shamsi said the inquiry is continuing. According to The Times of Israel, investigators are working to establish the circumstances of the incident, the motives behind it and any connections it may have, and are reviewing both physical and digital evidence. N12 likewise reported that the motive remains under investigation. Ynet's news alert said the probe of the pilot is ongoing.

Where the reports differ

The reports broadly agree, with one difference in wording. Ynet's brief alert referred to a flydubai pilot attempting to take over the aircraft's controls, without specifying the co-pilot. The Times of Israel and N12, both citing WAM, identify the attacker as the co-pilot and the victim as the captain. The difference may reflect the brevity of an alert rather than a factual dispute, but the outlets do not use the same term.

What the reports do not say

The material leaves several questions open. None of the reports names the co-pilot or the captain. They do not say how the attack was stopped, who regained control of the aircraft, or whether other crew members or passengers intervened. They give no figure for how many people were on board and do not say whether anyone besides the captain was hurt.

The reports do not say what evidence led the attorney general to call the act terrorism, whether the co-pilot acted alone, or whether he is in custody and in which country. They do not include any statement from flydubai, from Omani or Indian authorities, or from Saudi officials about the diversion. Nor do they say whether the co-pilot has been charged. The account of what took place in the cockpit rests, at this stage, on a single official source: the UAE attorney general as reported by WAM.