In Israel denied data on the Russian and Ukrainian citizenship of the fighting pilots of FlyDubai // Israeli authorities are investigating the incident with the FlyDubai aircraft as a terrorist attack

The pilots of the Boeing 737 airline Flydubai, flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv, were citizens of Oman and the United Arab Emirates, according to the Israeli channel 14. The information that the pilots were from Russia and Ukraine was not confirmed. During the flight, the men staged a fight, and authorities are checking the version of a terrorist attack.

According to media reports, one of the pilots tried to kill himself and crash the plane, which caused the liner to drop sharply in the air. After assessing the situation in the Israeli defense Ministry “incline to the fact that the incident was an act of terrorism”, writes the portal Ynet. According to the preliminary version, the co-pilot, a citizen of Oman, is considered involved. According to an Israeli source, the same flight was flown by an “undercover security officer” who helped defuse the attacker. The passengers also included two pilots who helped land the airliner in Saudi Arabia.

Walla reported that the fight between the pilots “was so fierce and disturbing that one of the crew members decided to press the distress button.” Channel 14 clarifies that the suspect pilot has been detained, the security service is investigating. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the Israel Defense Forces to send military rescue planes to return passengers to Israel. There is no information about the victims, although the media published a photo of one of the passengers, whose shirt is stained with blood. According to one version, this passenger helped detain the co-pilot. A senior Israeli official called it a “great miracle” that the casualties were avoided, Walla said.

An emergency happened this morning. The crew of the Boeing 737 issued a distress call and issued a warning about an attempted capture of the ship, which led Israel to fly two fighters to escort the liner. There were about 180 passengers on board. According to Channel 14, due to the actions of the co-pilot, the plane dropped sharply from about 30,000 to 15,000 feet, and this data is confirmed by the portal Flightradar24. The Israeli prime minister’s office said the situation was under control.