A pilot on an Israel-bound flight stabbed another pilot and "apparently tried to crash the plane", says Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu
The plane was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when it plummeted 17,000ft (5,200m) in less than two minutes, before being diverted to Saudi Arabia
See footage from the plane as it descended here
One passenger reports "terrible screams throughout the plane" before "three to five guys burst into the cockpit" and subdued an attacker
Another passenger says "we took control of the flight" from "an assailant with a knife" - meanwhile, two other pilots, sitting at the back, reportedly came forward to land the plane
Netanyahu says the pilot who launched the attack has been arrested and is being questioned by Saudi authorities - an Israeli ambassador says the other pilot is from the UAE
Netanyahu also "salutes the heroes" who helped "stabilise the aircraft", saying they "saved many lives and prevented a major disaster"
Passengers from the Flydubai flight have landed in Tel Aviv, hours after their scheduled arrival.
The repatriation flight left Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, at 17:40 local time (14:40 GMT, 15:40 BST).
We'll bring you the latest on this story as soon as we have more.
Image source, ReutersIsraeli President Isaac Herzog has thanked the "heroes" who "acted with immense courage" on the flight to Tel Aviv that was diverted to Saudi Arabia.
"Hours of worry ended in a great miracle and exceptional heroism," he writes on X, as a recovery flight makes its way to Israel.
"I strengthen the spirits of the plane's passengers making their way back home, and thank from the depths of my heart the heroes who acted with immense courage in these critical moments," he adds.
"We will continue to act together with our Emirati partners to learn from the event and fight terrorism."
Medics are waiting outside Israel's Ben Gurion airport where passengers whose plane was diverted earlier following a stabbing are due to arrive.
Once they land, they will all be given medical checks and any necessary additional care, emergency officials say.
Image source, EPAIntensive care mobile units and ambulances are ready and waiting, say officials
Passengers from the Flydubai plane involved in today's incident have now departed Saudi Arabia, airport operator Cluster2 says.
They left Tabuk airport at 17:40 local time (14:40 GMT, 15:40 BST), according to the Saudi operator.
As we reported earlier, Flydubai airline had sent two replacement planes to Tabuk "to relieve the passengers and crew".
The original flight had been travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv before being diverted to Saudi Arabia as this attack unfolded.
Michael Shuval
BBC Arabic
Israel Ohayon says his sister Miriam was sat directly behind the cockpit and "saw everything"
Israel Ohayon’s sister, Miriam Ohayon, was on board the Flydubai flight that was diverted to Saudi Arabia after one of the pilots was stabbed.
Speaking to BBC Arabic at Israel's Ben Gurion airport, the flight's planned destination, he says there is a feeling of "helplessness, complete uncertainty".
Ohayon says his sister reported "a lot of pressure and panic" with passengers feeling that they were "staring death in the face".
He says his sister was sitting "directly behind" the pilots and "saw everything" that happened - adding that "a few Israelis took initiative" and subdued the attacker.
"Mentally, she’s not in a good state. We lost our brother on October 7, 2023, so this brings us back a little to that time," Ohayon adds.
Charlotte Hadfield
Live reporter
Image source, EPA/ShutterstockA Flydubai plane at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, Israel
An Israel-bound plane plummeted 17,000ft in two minutes after one pilot stabbed another pilot and apparently tried to crash the plane, according to Israel's prime minister.
Benjamin Netanyahu says he has spoken to an Israeli passenger onboard the Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv who described how the plane "went into a spin and began to descend".
The passenger told him that "somehow he managed to break into the cockpit with one of the crew members and, together, they overpowered the pilot who had carried out the stabbing while he was attempting to sabotage the aircraft's systems".
Another crew member "entered the cockpit and managed to stabilise the aircraft", Netanyahu says, as he praised the "heroes" who "saved many lives and prevented a major disaster".
In a new statement, Flydubai, says the plane was "successfully secured" by on-duty crew travelling on the flight who "diverted and landed the aircraft safely at Tabuk airport".
The motives behind the attack remain unknown and are subject to a formal investigation, the airline says.
The pilot who carried out the stabbing has been arrested and is being questioned by authorities in Saudi Arabia, according to Netanyahu.
A series of extraordinary witness accounts have emerged, including from one passenger who described hearing "terrible screams throughout the plane" before "three to five guys burst into the cockpit" and subdued the attacker.
The incident comes at an even more febrile time than usual in Israel, with tightly contested elections just weeks away - it's bound to be used on all sides in the campaign,writes our global affairs correspondent Sebastian Usher.
Image source, ReutersIsrael's ambassador to the United Nations says a "heroic" pilot on the diverted Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv "fought like a lion" to protect passengers.
"The Israeli passengers on today's flight from Dubai showed extraordinary determination and resourcefulness, helping prevent a major disaster," Danny Danon writes on X.
"Thank you to the heroic Emirati pilot, who fought like a lion and protected the lives of the passengers," he adds.
"I wish him a speedy recovery and a safe journey home for all the passengers."
Noa Shpigel, a journalist at the Haaretz newspaper, has been telling the BBC that her 74-year-old mother was travelling on the Flydubai plane. She was on her way back to Israel after a trip to Nepal, travelling from Kathmandu via Dubai.
Noa says when she heard the news she checked the flight number and realised her mother was on the plane.
She has spoken to her mother who described how "they started to understand that something was wrong as the plane started to jump in the air and it started to dive down".
"They understood very quickly that something was going on very wrong in the cockpit."
Noa’s mother told her that several young Israeli men who were sitting at the front of the plane went into the cockpit and took control, she said.
It was a "really tough experience".
By Joshua Cheetham and Emma Pengelly
BBC Verify has checked a video showing some passengers onboard a Flydubai aircraft move towards the front of the plane, while others can be heard shouting.
Passenger films moment plane starts to lose altitude
In the clip, people ask what is going on, as well as reacting to others panicking and saying they don't know.
While we have not managed to match the passengers in the footage to those seen in other imagery, the layout and design of the seats are consistent with a Flydubai Boeing 737 MAX aircraft and the video has recently been shared online.
Image source, EPAA Flydubai plane waiting at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv on 30 September
Following the updates from the Israeli government, we've also just received a statement from Flydubai, the operator of the plane where the incident took place.
A spokesman for the airline says "an altercation occurred in the flight deck" of flight FZ 1073, which was travelling from Dubai International to Ben Gurion International Airport on 30 September.
The aircraft was "successfully secured by on-duty Flydubai crew travelling on the flight", who diverted and landed the aircraft safely at Tabuk Airport, it says.
All passengers and crew are safe and accounted for and the airline has deployed two replacement aircraft to Tabuk "to relieve the passengers and crew".
The operator adds that this incident has no impact on other scheduled flights across the Flydubai network.
"At this early stage, the underlying reasons and motives behind this event are unknown and remain subject to a formal investigation."
The airline urged people to refrain from "premature speculation" and said its immediate priority was the safety, health, and wellbeing of all passengers and crew members.
The Israeli defence minster, Israel Katz, has said early indications show that one of the pilots had intended to crash the plane, killing everyone on board.
He said the incident was an "attempted jihadist terror attack", and praised Israeli passengers for overpowering the pilot.
Here is more from the Israeli prime minister's statement:
During the flight, as they were approaching Israel, one of the pilots stabbed the other pilot and, apparently, tried to crash the plane with its passengers on board.
I spoke with one of the Israeli passengers. He told me that the plane went into a spin and began to descend. He told me that, somehow, he managed to break into the cockpit with one of the crew members and, together, they overpowered the pilot who had carried out the stabbing while he was attempting to sabotage the aircraft's systems.
Another air crew who was on the plane entered the cockpit and managed to stabilise the aircraft.
I salute these heroes who demonstrated extraordinary resourcefulness and courage. They saved many lives and prevented a major disaster.
The plane landed safely at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia. All the passengers are now out of danger.
The pilot who carried out the stabbing was arrested and is currently being questioned by the Saudi authorities.
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has given a statement on the Flydubai flight incident.
He says "the pilot who carried out the stabbing was arrested and is currently being questioned by the Saudi authorities".
We'll have the full statement in our next post.
Image source, AFP via Getty ImagesPassengers queue at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, where the plane was due to land
Accounts from passengers on the plane are continuing to come in.
Talking to Israeli outlet Calcalist, Zvika Manes described the incident as incredibly "traumatic".
At the time of the altercation, his daughter was in the bathroom and his wife, who was standing near the cockpit, heard "shouting" and "screams".
She alerted a relief pilot to the situation, urging them to "get in" to the cockpit.
Manes said he subsequently entered the cockpit to help subdue the attacker, adding: "I'm covered in blood. It was crazy".
The BBC has not verified this account, but we're working to confirm the details on this developing story.
A Flydubai plane sent to recover the passengers stranded at Tabuk airport after a reported stabbing on a previous flight has landed.
The earlier Dubai to Tel Aviv flight (FZ1073) was diverted to Tabuk airport, in Saudi Arabia, after an emergency signal - and later a hijacking warning - was broadcast.
Flydubai reports that its recovery plane (FZ8455) landed in Tabuk at 12:43 BST (14:43 local time).
A passenger on the flight has told Israeli newspaper Haaretz that the plane lost control and began to "dive" about an hour before the scheduled landing.
Dalia Shpigel told the paper that "suddenly there were terrible screams throughout the plane" before "three to five guys burst into the cockpit" and subdued the attacker and began treating the injured pilot.
"We realised that the situation was stabilising and continued the flight. Gradually, information began to emerge about what had happened in the cockpit," Shpigel said.
She said the "young men" then took charge and began tending to passengers as the plane altered its course to land in Saudi Arabia.
"Right now, we're all here in the terminal, and medical teams are examining us," she added.
The BBC has not verified this account. We're yet to receive an official statement confirming the nature of the incident and how many people were involved.
Sebastian Usher
Global affairs correspondent
The incident on the Flydubai flight comes at an even more febrile time than usual in Israel, with tightly contested elections just weeks away.
Whatever the facts turn out to be, it's bound to be used on all sides in the campaign.
The far-right Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has, as expected, fired the first salvo, denouncing it as an attempted act of terrorism that shows that Israel must fight until all its enemies are defeated.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is likely to send the same message. On Tuesday, he posted a video from an airbase warning that there were indications that Israel's enemies would mount an attack ahead of the elections.
One of his main opposition rivals, Yair Lapid has moved quickly to say that nothing in what Netanyahu said remotely resembled what has just happened. Another party leader, Avigdor Liebrman, has accused the government's supporters of trying to turn the incident into "political capital".
And in the midst of this, the air route between Israel and the UAE - which has been one of the fruits of Emiratis signing up to the Abraham Accords - has been put in doubt.
Transportation minister Miri Regev is reported to have demanded that all Flydubai flights should be suspended.
The diverted Israel-bound Flydubai airplane is one of the airline's 10 daily flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
The airline's first flights depart Dubai at 05:15 local time (02:00 BST), with the last one setting off at 19:15.
Ten flights also depart from Tel Aviv headed to Dubai each day, with the last one leaving Israel at 22:50 local time (20:50 BST).
The majority of direct flights on this route are chartered by Flydubai and scheduled to take three hours and 25 minutes. Other airlines, such as Arkia and Israir, also have flights on the route but they are not as frequent.
Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) established diplomatic relations in 2020 under a US-brokered deal known as the Abraham Accords. The deal resulted in the normalisation of relations between Israel and the UAE. Saudi Arabian airspace was blocked to Israeli air traffic before the deal.
A video shared by Israeli media appears to show a witness on board who says "an assailant with a knife" stabbed one of the pilots.
BBC Verify has checked the video, which shows no sign of AI manipulation and do not appear to have been posted online before the event.
In the video, the man, who is speaking to camera from a plane seat, says: "We took control of the flight and an assailant with a knife who stabbed one of the pilots."
He says they got the alleged assailant out of the cockpit, and everything is "okay now".
"There’s a pilot who’s seriously wounded.
"There’s another pilot who was also wounded but he’s managing to land the plane - he’s with two crew members we made sure to shut the door I love you and all is okay."
He adds that the reported suspect is neutralised.
We're yet to receive an official statement confirming the nature of the incident or how many people were involved.
Jon Donnison
Middle East correspondent in Jerusalem
As more eyewitness testimony comes in from the passengers on board, this is developing into an extraordinary and terrifying story.
The plane sent a signal saying it had been hijacked. But it now appears it was an attempted hijacking not by the passengers but one of the pilots.
People on board have described how the plane began to plummet 17,000ft (5,200m) in a matter of minutes.
There are reports there was a fight between the pilot and the co-pilot with at least one of them being stabbed.
One passenger said people then broke into the cockpit to help tackle one of the pilots and tie him down. Mobile phone video shows several people on board covered in blood.
Investigators will now be looking at whether one of the pilots intended to deliberately crash the aircraft and if so whether he was politically motivated.
