Inside the Cockpit Struggle Aboard a flydubai Flight

The flight was proceeding normally when the co-pilot requested time to pray, a common practice that raised no suspicion. Machchhar maintained his focus on the flight deck to grant his colleague privacy. Minutes later, the first blow landed. Initially, the captain believed the aircraft had suffered a catastrophic mechanical failure, but the persistence of the strikes quickly dispelled that theory.

“The blows kept coming, one after the other,” Machchhar told the Prime Minister. Upon identifying his attacker as the person sitting beside him, the captain moved to neutralize the threat and regain control of the aircraft. The incident, which left Machchhar with serious injuries, remains a subject of intense scrutiny as authorities investigate the co-pilot's sudden turn to violence.