In a flash, Israeli dentist Dr. Shota Musaev went from being another passenger aboard FlyDubai Flight 1073 to a quick-thinking hero who helped save the life of the jet’s captain after he was attacked inside the cabin.
Musaev told ABC News on Thursday that when he and a group of passengers rushed to the cockpit after Capt. Smit Machchhar was attacked, he did not hesitate to do something.
“I think, how [can] I help this situation for all [the passengers for all plane. How I can help,” he told ABC News in an interview at his home in Tel Aviv. “And I see one pilot on the floor, with … blood.”
An unidentified co-pilot allegedly attacked Machchhar with a knife and took the plane into a nose dive in an attempt to crash the plane during its flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Israeli officials said.
Another passenger, Yaniv Hayun was able to drag the suspect from the cockpit, took control of the plane and leveled it before a third pilot took over and flew the jet to Saudi Arabia, according to other passengers.
After the plane was leveled, Musaev said he saw the suspect and, with another passenger, tied the suspect’s hands up with headphones. The dentist said the suspect, who is now in custody , said little other than that he was from Oman and then told him “Kill me, kill me, please.”
“Once he had been subdued, caught, he didn’t resist,” Musaev said.
The dentist said he quickly turned his attention to Capt. Machchhar, who was bleeding from wounds to his head, neck and hands. Musaev said he began applying pressure to the wounds to stop the bleeding.
“Everything will be good,” Musaev said he told the pilot as he treated him. “He said to me, ‘Help me, please. Help me, please. I don’t want to die here.'”
The plane landed in Saudi Arabia, where the passengers were given medical treatment. The whole ordeal lasted around 40 minutes, Musaev said.
He said on Thursday he was still only understanding what they had been through. “Do you understand we were five to ten seconds from dying?” he said, choking up.
Captain Machchhar was treated at a local hospital in Saudi Arabia and has now been transferred to another hospital in the United Arab Emirates, according to the Indian consulate in Dubai.
“He was speaking openly, smiling and laughing, which was a great relief for us and, above all, for his family,” the Indian ambassador said in a statement Thursday.
The co-pilot is in custody in Abu Dhabi, according to officials from Saudi Arabia
Musaev said he hoped to reunite with the captain one day and express his gratitude for saving him and his fellow passengers despite his injuries.
“We’ll say thank you very much for all,” he said, adding that it was a collective effort in handling the situation.
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
