A flight to Israel from the United Arab Emirates was diverted to Saudi Arabia after it reported an emergency due to a fight between pilots, Reuters and the Associated Press reported, citing Israeli authorities.
Passengers intervened to break up the fighting pilots on a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, which was diverted to Saudi Arabia, Agence France-Presse reported, citing accounts in Israeli media, BTA reported.
They posted a photo showing one of the pilots with a T-shirt covered in blood. Israel's Channel 12 reported that authorities were investigating a possible suicide attempt by one of the pilots. It is believed that he tried to crash the plane, but the other pilot managed to prevent the crash.
According to the Israeli television, the pilot was of Russian origin, and the second pilot was of Ukrainian origin. It is believed that the two fought in the cockpit, until one of them lost consciousness. About 180 Israeli citizens were on board the plane, reported the newspaper “Haaretz”.
According to Channel 12, they were instructed to remain in their seats and not leave the plane after it landed in Saudi Arabia. Only the two pilots were ejected.
There were initial fears that the plane had been hijacked after media reported that it had transmitted a distress signal of 7700 before switching to 7500, the code used for a hijacking. Israeli fighter jets were scrambled in response, the Times of Israel reported.
Israeli army chief of staff Gen. Eyal Zamir held consultations with senior military officials, including the head of the air force, about the incident.
The CEO of Flydubai has informed Israeli transport authorities that another plane will be sent from Dubai to bring back passengers from Saudi Arabia to Israel, Channel 12 reported.