Pilot Brawl, 17,000-Foot Drop: How Israel-Bound Flydubai Flight Ended Up In Saudi Arabia

A passenger plane travelling from the United Arab Emirates and bound for Israel on Wednesday had to make an emergency landing. The plane transmitted emergency codes for a possible hijacking. It landed in Tabuk, which is a civilian and military base in the northwestern region of Saudi Arabia.

Later, an ​Israeli official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the pilots had transmitted the ​emergency signals after getting into a physical altercation with each other and that there was no case of hijacking. Reports suggest the emergency code was transmitted during the brawl between the pilots.

The spokesperson for the FlyDubai flight told the media that there was an "incident" en route to Tel Aviv and it was diverted to Tabuk, where it landed safely. All passengers on the plane were safe. The plane had approximately 150 people on it.

What was the incident?

The aircraft was on the Dubai-to-Tel Aviv route when it transmitted an emergency alert quickly after takeoff. Flight-tracking data showed that the flight number FZ1073 first sent squawk code 7700, then switched to 7500. Code 7700 signals a general emergency. Code 7500 points to unlawful interference with an aircraft, including a possible hijacking.

Flight tracking data reviewed by CNN shows the aircraft lost 17,400 feet in a little over two minutes over northwestern Saudi Arabia. It fell from 34,000 feet to about 16,600 feet at around 1:20 a.m. ET, then sent an emergency signal at 1:32 a.m. ET and touched down in Saudi Arabia just before 3 a.m. ET.

Passengers on the plane said that those people who were seated in the front seats heard shouting linked to the altercation between the pilots, and that the plane dipped steeply before landing in Saudi Arabia, according to Israel's Channel 12.

As a result of the emergency codes, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and its defence minister called for an emergency meeting. Israel was also prompting warplanes to scramble, according to publicly available flight tracking information.

Tension in West Asia

There is already a war happening between Iran and the US. Israel is a close ally of the US and participated in earlier bombing of Iran in February. Any civilian crisis would have deepened the ongoing war in West Asia.

The Iranian foreign minister said he expected a formal US response on Tuesday to Tehran’s latest proposal. The proposal centres on a ceasefire and a phased reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The latest turn followed comments from President Donald Trump on Monday. He said US and Iranian negotiators had spoken through mediators in recent days, but he did not cast the contacts as a breakthrough. Trump also said he had offered “nothing,” pushing back on an Axios report that he was prepared to grant Iran some sanctions relief and access to frozen funds.

Flydubai is the sister company of the UAE’s brand flight operating company Emirates. It is considered cheaper, and therefore it attracts a lot of travellers.