Passenger hugs children as Flydubai plane nosedives after pilot attack

Thu Oct 01 2026 15:32:18 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

A Flydubai passenger recounts how he held his children while the aircraft plummeted after a stabbing, before passengers overpowered the attacker.

During a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, a pilot stabbed his colleague in a harrowing attempt to seize control. The aircraft dropped over 17,000 feet before passengers and crew wrestled the cockpit back. Passenger Adam Polovincik described hugging his son and daughter to keep them calm amid the chaos. The stabbed pilot later received hospital treatment; the attacker was arrested in Saudi Arabia and is to be transferred to the UAE. The ordeal ended safely when the plane diverted to Tabuk, underscoring the courage of both crew and passengers.

Flydubai passenger hugs children as plane nosedives after pilot attack

At about 5 a.m. GMT, a Flydubai aircraft cruising from Dubai to Tel Aviv collapsed over 17,000 feet when a second pilot stabbed a fellow crew member in a violent attempt to seize control. The crash, lasting less than two minutes, was abruptly halted when passengers and crew overpowered the assailant and retook the aircraft's cockpit.

The flight’s passenger Adam Polovincik, a 40‑year‑old performance marketing analyst, explains how he managed to keep his six‑year‑old son and three‑year‑old daughter calm. “I hugged them really hard and tried to stay calm for them as the attack unfolded,” he told BBC’s Newshour.

Polovincik praised the stabbed pilot and the brave cabin crew, calling them “true heroes.” The pilot was later hospitalised and the alleged attacker was arrested while the aircraft diverted to Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the incident was “too early to say whether Iran was involved,” adding that the attacker had received “Islamist radical indoctrination.” The authorities in Saudi Arabia will transfer the suspect to the UAE, the country from which the flight departed.

Polovincik, who had just returned from a family holiday in Singapore and Thailand, described the panic on board and the “very, very, very sharp decrease in height.” He recounted that, after passengers were told the situation was “under control,” the crew managed to steady the situation and the plane landed safely at Tabuk.

Subsequent flights carried the Israeli passengers to Tel Aviv, where they were greeted by crowds playing music, singing, and waving Israeli flags. “It was such a terrible ending to an amazing family trip,” Polovincik said, noting it will take time for his family to process the ordeal.

The incident underscores the resilience of passengers and crew in the face of terror, highlighting the crucial role of collective bravery in aviation emergencies.