Machchhar, who was attacked by his Omani co-pilot on Flight FZ1073, which was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv, was able to open the cockpit door of the aircraft to let passengers in.
Flydubai pilot Smit Machchhar is making “steady progress” and is “regaining his health”, the Indian Embassy in United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday.
The passengers then restrained the co-pilot and a dentist gave Machchhar medical assistance. Machchhar, who was seriously wounded in the attack, was shifted to Abu Dhabi in UAE for further treatment. A second set of pilots took control and the flight, which had 174 passengers onboard, landed safely in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk.
In an update last week, India’s ambassador to the UAE, Deepak Mittal, had said that Machchhar was recovering well and “smiling, laughing, chatting” at the hospital in Abu Dhabi. Mittal met Machchhar and his family at the hospital and said the pilot was in a stable condition and receiving good medical care.
