Category: mental illness

TravelRisk Pilots – First Officer attacks Captain in Cockpit

Trump Praises Boeing After 737 MAX Survives 14,000ft Plunge During flydubai Cockpit Attack

flydubai Boeing 737 MAX Custom Thumbnail

The Boeing 737 MAX aircraft involved in Wednesday’s suspected terror incident withstood forces “far beyond” its design, according to US President Donald Trump. The aircraft dropped over 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds after its First Officer allegedly stabbed the Captain, before an Israeli plumber with no piloting background reportedly grabbed the controls to help level the aircraft.

An analysis of flight tracking data suggests the 737 MAX 8 may have exceeded its maximum operating limits during the dive, and photos taken after landing show a large section of its rudder missing. Initial data shows its ground speed rose from roughly 400 knots in cruise to upwards of 600 knots, before the aircraft stabilized at around 15,000 feet.

Trump Praises Boeing’s 737 MAX After Extreme flydubai Descent

Boeing 737 MAX 8 - FlyDubai take off from Ben gurion airportCredit: Felix Tchvertkin | Shutterstock

In a social media post early on Thursday, Trump congratulated Boeing and its CEO Kelly Ortberg on the jet’s “powerful structural planning and design” after it survived the rapid descent, albeit with significant damage to its rudder. Trump said the plane was able to “withstand G-forces and strain far beyond what it was designed and expected to do,” with some experts saying they were surprised the forces did not cause the aircraft’s entire vertical stabilizer to rip away.

The 737 MAX 8 operating flight FZ1073 from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) was cruising at around 34,000 feet over Saudi Arabia when the cockpit incident and subsequent plunge began at approximately 05:21 UTC.

According to Flightradar24, between 05:22:07 and 05:22:36 UTC, the 737 MAX dropped from 30,875 feet to 16,750 feet, losing 14,125 feet in just 29 seconds.

Its descent rate hit almost 31,000 feet per minute, far steeper than a standard emergency descent, while its ground speed increased from around 400 knots to nearly 600 knots. Following the initial plunge, the aircraft briefly climbed before descending again, eventually stabilizing at around 15,000 feet.

Off-duty flydubai pilots then took over the controls, and the aircraft diverted to Tabuk Airport (TUU) in Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely with all 174 passengers aboard accounted for. Former United Airlines pilot and aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo told The Associated Press he was amazed the jet held together given the extent of its rudder damage. Arroyo said:

“That was a serious descent and strong aerodynamic forces on that rudder for that to happen. I’m just amazed the aircraft didn’t come apart.”

According to Boeing’s official specifications, the 737 MAX has a maximum operating speed of Mach 0.82, or around 473 knots, at higher altitudes, while it typically cruises at Mach 0.79, or around 455 knots. Pilots are not permitted to deliberately exceed the maximum operating speed, although commercial jets are designed and tested with a safety margin beyond it.

FAA certification rules require an aircraft’s design dive speed to include a margin of at least Mach 0.07 above its maximum speed. Additionally, its structure must also remain free from flutter at speeds up to 15% beyond that limit. These requirements give commercial jets a buffer beyond their normal operating envelope, which can be critical during unexpected events such as Wednesday’s rapid descent.

The missing section of its rudder suggests the 737 MAX was pushed beyond its limits during the dive, although it is unclear whether this resulted from excessive speed, the aircraft’s extreme maneuvering, or another cause. The aircraft’s airspeed data will confirm the full extent of forces that the MAX 8 withstood once the 737’s flight data recorder is analyzed.

flydubai boeing 737 cabin with passengers

Further accounts of what happened on board have emerged about what was initially reported as an ‘altercation’ in the cockpit. Israeli officials told Reuters that the First Officer, an Omani national who had been with flydubai for around nine months, is believed to have stabbed the Captain, an Indian national named Smit Machchhar. Passengers and crew then rushed the cockpit to regain control.

Machchhar was reportedly lying on the flight deck floor covered in blood when he pressed a cockpit door release button, allowing passengers and crew to enter and overpower his attacker. One of the passengers was plumber Yaniv Hayoun, who first grabbed the controls to level the aircraft before off-duty flydubai pilots took command.

With no reported pilot training, he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he knew to pull back on the controls after watching the TV show Air Crash Investigation.

Flydubai has since suspended all flights to Israel as authorities continue their investigation into the suspected terror attack. The carrier typically operates up to ten daily flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv in each direction.

Reported by Simple Flying on 1 October 2026.

travelrisk: passenger opens door during Asiana flight, mental illness?

The Asiana Airlines plane is parked at Daegu International Airport.

A passenger aboard a South Korean flight opened an emergency door moments before the plane landed — sparking caught-on-video chaos and panic among the 194 passengers in the wind-swept cabin.

The Asiana Airlines Airbus A321 was about to land in Daegu after a flight from the southern island of Jeju on Friday when the passenger pulled the emergency exit handle at an altitude of about 700 feet, officials said.

Some of the other passengers tried to prevent the person from reaching the door but it partially opened, sending air whipping throughout the cabin as terrified fliers gripped their armrests.

Among the 194 passengers onboard were several teenage athletes who were on their way to a weekend sporting event in Ulsan.

At least a dozen people suffered minor injuries in the harrowing incident before the plane landed safely, according to the Transportation Ministry.

Several showed symptoms of breathing difficulty and were taken to a local hospital, Yonhap reported.

“It was chaos with people close to the door appearing to faint one by one and flight attendants calling out for doctors on board through broadcasting,” a passenger told the local news outlet.

“I thought the plane was blowing up. I thought I was going to die like this,” the 44-year-old added.

One teen’s mother told the news outlet: “Children quivered and cried in panic. Those sitting near the exit must have been shocked the most.”

The suspect, identified only as a man in his 30s, was arrested at Daegu International Airport and confessed to opening the door, but would not say why he did it, CNN reported.

Witnesses told local media that the unhinged passenger also tried to jump out of the plane.

“It is difficult to have a normal conversation with him,” an official said, according to the BBC. “We will investigate the motive of the crime and punish him.”

Geoffrey Thomas, an aviation expert with Airline Ratings, described the incident as “very bizarre.”

“Technically, it’s not possible to open those doors in flight,” he told CNN.

He said winds of about 170 mph would have been passing the plane when the door was opened.

“It seems implausible that the door could be opened in the first place and then against the airstream technically impossible, but somehow or another it has happened,” Thomas added.

The Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry said an aviation safety official would check whether there was an abnormality in the plane’s maintenance, CNN reported.

Reported on 26 May 2023 by New York Post.