‘I couldn’t let everybody else die’: Hero pilot Smit Machchhar makes first public remarks
The hero flydubai captain who fought off an attack by his co-pilot has told India’s Prime Minister he kept fighting because he could not “let everyone else die”.
In his first public remarks, Smit Machchhar revealed to Narendra Modi in a video call on Friday that he was fighting for his life in that moment.
The hero flydubai captain who fought off an attack by his co-pilot has told India’s Prime Minister he kept fighting because he could not “let everyone else die”. Narendra Modi YouTube Channel via AP
“Because I had fallen down… I was so severely wounded that I had fallen down… at that time, I was thinking what if I don’t get up?” Machchhar said.
Flydubai flight FZ1073 made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after sending a distress signal and briefly signalling a potential hijacking.
The plane was diverted and forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
Machchhar said he was on the ground in cockpit when he realised the plane was going down.
“And I knew in that moment – one last push, Smit! Just do it. The door is right there,” he told Modi.
Smit Machchhar spoke to Narendra Modi in a video call on Friday from hospital, as he recovers in Abu Dhabi. Instagram/ @narendramodi
Machchhar said he was on the ground in cockpit when he realised the plane was going down. Indian Embassy Israel
“And even at that time, he was beating me up.”
“And then I just opened it… and then everybody came.
“I was doing this for my life, but at the same time, I knew that I couldn’t let everybody else die.”
Modi said Machchhar’s “courage, patience and quick thinking” saved the lives of so many people.
Machchhar is recovering at a hospital in Abu Dhabi.
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