Abu Dhabi [UAE], October 18 (ANI): Captain Smit Machchhar, who has been hailed as the hero for averting the potential catastrophe aboard a flydubai flight on September 30, recalled the incident, stating he suffered several blows in an attack by the co-pilot before he could open the cockpit door.
In an interview with UAE’s state-owned The National, Captain Machchhar said his vision got narrowed. He said he could open the door before he fell face down in the cockpit.
Describing the incident, Captain Machchhar said, “The first time when I was hit … my thought was something's gone horribly wrong with the aircraft structure, which has fallen on my head. It almost made me fall on my control column. In the next couple of seconds, when the hits kept on coming, (I realised) it was the other person who I thought was supposed to be on the team.”
“My immediate action was to free myself from the seat belts. And I tried to just block the blows as much as I could, because the blows were coming on the head… While the first few blows came in, my vision … it was so narrow. I lost a lot. I was just looking (at) outlines,” he told The National.
“Immediately, my hand went to the knob which opens the door. And (I was) screaming for my colleagues. I believe that was the first time when I lost consciousness. I fell face down in the cockpit,” he added.
As the plane plunged 17,000 feet, he said, “The scariest thing that I heard and felt was the engines spooling down.”
Captain Machchhar, who is recovering at Abu Dhabi's Zayed Military Hospital, said he had no suspicion of the co-pilot.
“If there was something that could have hinted earlier on the ground or something, yes, of course, I would have acted. I would have spoken up. I would have questioned some things like that,” he said.
Even after the horrific incident, he told The National, “Did my love die for aviation? Not at all. Not at all. I'm just glad that I was able to do my part.”
His Omani co-pilot, Hamam al-Hammami, had attacked him inside the cockpit in what is seen as a plot to crash the plane.
Machchhar managed to unlatch the cockpit door, allowing passengers and off-duty crew members to enter and restrain the co-pilot, who attacked him with an axe in an attempt to bring down the aircraft. A hijacking distress signal was transmitted. The flight was subsequently diverted and made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, with the help of passengers who landed the plane. All 180 occupants disembarked without injury.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has announced that he would confer Israel’s Presidential Award for Civilian Heroism. The Gujarat government has announced a Visisht Gujarat Garima Award for him. (ANI)
Tried to block the blows...Vision narrowed, I lost consciousness: Capt Smit Machchhar recalls flydubai mid-air attack
