Dubai, Oct 4: Dubai Crown Prince Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on Saturday praised Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar for his courage and actions after he was seriously injured in an attack by his co-pilot during a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
Machchhar was stabbed in the cockpit of flydubai flight FZ1073 on Wednesday while the aircraft was travelling to Israel.
Crown Prince Hamdan, who is also the UAE’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, visited Machchhar at the hospital where he is receiving treatment and shared photographs of the meeting on X.
Hamdan praised the pilot for demonstrating courage, responsibility and concern for the safety of those on board.
He said Machchhar had earned the appreciation of the UAE leadership and described his actions as reflecting the values of compassion, peace and protection of human life.
The Indian Embassy in the UAE had earlier said that Machchhar was recovering well and remained under medical care.
“Indian braveheart Capt. Smit remains under excellent medical care and is recovering well,” the embassy said in a post on X, adding that it was in contact with his family and local authorities and supporting his recovery.
The embassy also thanked the UAE Government for providing medical treatment to the pilot.
The UAE authorities, which are investigating the incident, have described the co-pilot’s actions as an alleged “terrorist act”. UAE Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said the co-pilot used a crash axe to attack Machchhar and attempted to take control of the aircraft, according to state-run WAM.
Despite sustaining serious injuries, Machchhar reportedly managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew members to overpower the co-pilot.
The co-pilot has been identified by the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, as Omani national Hamam al-Hammami.
The flight was carrying 174 passengers when it issued emergency signals and rapidly descended more than 17,000 feet from an altitude of around 34,000 feet before making an emergency landing at Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
Machchhar received initial treatment in Tabuk before being transferred to Abu Dhabi for further medical care.
