"Plunged 4,200 Meters in 30 Seconds" Tail Fin Also Damaged... Passenger Plane's 'Cockpit Knife Attack' Takes a New Turn (Roundup)

[Financial News] A flydubai passenger plane bound for Israel made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia after its co-pilot went on a knife rampage in the cockpit. The aircraft was found to have plunged 4,200 meters in less than 30 seconds, damaging even its tail fin. Reports that initially described the incident as a brawl between Russian and Ukrainian pilots have also been challenged by claims about different nationalities, ushering in a new phase in the case.


According to foreign media, including The Associated Press (AP), on the 30th (local time), an analysis by aircraft-tracking site Flightradar24 found that the passenger plane, a Boeing 737 MAX, plunged from an altitude of 34,000 feet to about 14,000 feet, or approximately 4,200 meters, in less than a minute—about 30 seconds—just before transmitting its first emergency signal.
The cockpit situation was so completely out of control that a second signal indicating "unlawful interference (hijacking)" was transmitted immediately after the initial emergency signal. Photos released on social media show severe damage to the rudder on the vertical tail of the aircraft after it made the emergency landing, suggesting how violent the plunge and resulting turbulence were.


The captain and co-pilot involved in the brawl were taken to a hospital immediately after landing at Saudi Arabia's Tabuk Airport and remain hospitalized. One of them is reportedly seriously injured. Reports also differ over the pilots' nationalities and motives. Israeli media initially reported that they were Russian and Ukrainian nationals, but claims later emerged that they were from Oman and the UAE. No official confirmation has yet been made.
Israeli authorities are investigating the incident with a "terrorist attempt" as the leading possibility: that the co-pilot seized control of the aircraft and tried to deliberately crash it with the passengers aboard. As the plane began to plunge after the co-pilot stabbed the captain with a pocketknife, crew members and Israeli passengers who noticed what was happening opened the damaged cockpit door and rushed inside. They subdued the co-pilot in a struggle inside the blood-soaked cockpit, preventing a massive catastrophe.
Meanwhile, Israeli authorities scrambled fighter jets immediately after detecting the hijacking signal and closed the country's airspace. They lifted those measures after the passenger plane landed safely. flydubai secured a replacement aircraft to transport the passengers and is coordinating with Saudi authorities to investigate the exact circumstances of the incident.

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