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‘Prevented 9/11-type tragedy’: PM Modi praises flydubai Indian pilot Smit Machchhar’s courage, quotes Netanyahu
“The bravery of flydubai's Captain Smit Machchhar fills our hearts with pride," PM Modi said.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hailed Indian pilot Smit Machchhar for averting a “9/11-type tragedy” by foiling an alleged attempt by his co-pilot to crash a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
“The incident that occurred yesterday, Captain Smit of India demonstrated remarkable patience, presence of mind, and courage. Indeed, as the Prime Minister of Israel stated today, an Indian prevented a 9/11-type tragedy,” he said, referring to the US terror strikes that saw hijacked planes crash into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, killing nearly 3,000 people.
“The bravery of flydubai's Captain Smit Machchhar fills our hearts with pride,” Modi added.
He made the remarks at a function marking the centenary of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), hours after he spoke to Machchhar’s wife and his parents and applauded his bravery.
“Today, I also spoke to his father, Bhupendra Bhai, his mother, Geeta Behen, and his wife, Sonal Behen. He is currently undergoing treatment. The entire world is proud of him today. I appeal to all citizens to pray for Smit's long life and good health, and to honour Smit, who has made India proud,” Modi said.
On Wednesday, the co-pilot allegedly stabbed the captain onboard the Boeing 737 MAX 8, triggering a battle in the cockpit and plunging the aircraft 14,300 feet in roughly 30 seconds over northern Saudi Arabia. The identity of the co-pilot – an Omani national – is yet to be ascertained.
Earlier, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed Machchhar for his “extraordinary bravery”. "An amazing act of heroism -- of his, of the Indian pilot, of the people who helped them. They stopped a disaster that could have been global," he said, as he also praised an Israeli passenger who helped overpower the attacker.
The Indian embassy said Machchhar was being treated at a hospital in Saudi Arabia.
According to people aware of the details, Machchhar is from Ghatkopar East in Mumbai and was based in Dubai for work. He underwent surgery and is stable, authorities said.
Also Read | PM Modi speaks to Captain Smit Machchhar's family after flydubai attack
Machchhar joined flydubai’s 737 fleet as a direct-entry captain in June 2022 after 11 years with SpiceJet in Mumbai, where he rose to senior commander and, from November 2020, trained and checked other pilots, according to his LinkedIn profile. The profile lists 9,750 flying hours and a business administration degree from the Welingkar Institute of Management. His brother is a pilot with Akasa Air, the people said.
Flight data from Flightradar24 and ADS-B Exchange, analysed by HT, show the plane took off from Dubai at 7.05am local time and cruised west over Saudi Arabia at 34,000 feet. At 8.21am Saudi time (10.51am IST), a little over two hours into the flight and about 235km north-east of Tabuk, it began to descend. Between two readings 37 seconds apart it fell from 33,225 feet to 18,925 feet, about 23,000 feet a minute. At a typical 2,000 feet a minute, an airliner would take seven minutes to lose that height.
Photographs of the aircraft at Tabuk appear to show the rudder torn from its tail. That kind of damage can occur when control surfaces are moved too hard at high speed, and it would fit a dive as violent as the one the flight data record. HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the photographs.
The plane bottomed out at 16,600 feet as its ground speed peaked at 598 knots (1,107km/h), then climbed more than 5,000 feet, fell again to 13,675 feet by 8.27am and levelled off at about 15,000 feet. Receivers lost its position for nine minutes. When the track resumed at 8.31am, the transponder showed 7700, the general emergency code, and at 8.35am it switched to 7500, the hijack code. It was not clear who set the codes.
The plane flew northwest into Jordan, turned back and was over Saudi territory by 8.45am.
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