India
Machchhar thanks Modi after leaders call him a hero
The Hindu BusinessLine··1 Oct
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed Captain Smit Machchhar. Machchhar replied to Modi that he was simply doing his duty as a pilot to protect lives entrusted to him. Flight FZ1073 carried 174 passengers and diverted to Tabuk. He has logged over 9,750 flight hours, including more than 6,400 as Pilot-in-Command.
Prism
What It Means For You
- The Indian embassy in Riyadh and consulate in Jeddah are following Machchhar's health in Tabuk.
- Passengers and crew overpowered the attacker after Machchhar opened the cockpit door, Netanyahu said.
- Yaniv Hayun told Netanyahu he pulled the aircraft controls during the descent.
What's Happening
- Modi wrote that India is proud of Machchhar and prayed for his recovery.
- The Boeing 737 MAX 8 was operating Dubai to Tel Aviv when the co-pilot attacked with a knife, the report said.
- Machchhar joined flydubai as a Direct Entry Captain on the Boeing 737 family in June 2022.
His Path To The Flight Deck
- He joined SpiceJet in 2011 and spent eleven years there before the Dubai role.
- He rose to Senior Commander and Line Training Captain mentoring commercial pilots.
- He is recovering after emergency surgery in a Tabuk hospital.
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