FlyDubai captain tells India’s leader how he saved himself and 173 others while fighting for his own life

October 2, 2026 / 6:57 AM EDT / CBS News

The FlyDubai captain attacked by his co-pilot on a Wednesday flight to Israel says his faith gave him the courage to seize what he believed to be a last chance to save himself and the 173 other people on board the plane.

Flight captain Smit Machchhar told India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an emotional video call from his hospital bed in Saudi Arabia on Thursday that, despite multiple stab wounds, he managed to open the cockpit door to let in passengers who subdued the attacking co-pilot, likely saving the 174 people on the Boeing 737.

"I was fighting for my life," said Machchhar. "When I was lying on the floor I could feel the aircraft was going down. I knew exactly that this would be the last push. I told myself that if I didn't get up, there would be a problem. I managed to open the door, and then everyone else came in."

Machchhar told Modi how, in his darkest moments, he repeated Hindu religious chants and clung to his faith, believing "God would save us."

He apologized for breaking down in tears as he told the Indian…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/entertainment/