Afət Ziyadqızı
United Arab Emirates-based Flydubai said a plane flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv landed safely at Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia after sending an emergency signal.
Operative Information Center-OMM reports that information published on the airline’s official website said “an incident occurred” aboard flight FZ1073. The aircraft landed safely at Tabuk airport, and all passengers were reported to be in good health.
Flydubai said it would provide further information on the matter in the coming hours.
According to Israeli media, the plane flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv first transmitted the general emergency code “7700” while in Jordanian airspace, followed by code “7500”, indicating a hijacking.
Channel 12 reported that the incident was linked to an argument between the two pilots operating the passenger aircraft. According to the report, one of the pilots lost consciousness during the altercation, and the emergency code was sent by mistake at that time.
Local media reported that one pilot was a Ukrainian national and the other a Russian national. They also said authorities were investigating an allegation that one of the pilots attempted to commit suicide and crash the aircraft, while Israeli passengers tried to prevent him from doing so.
Emergency aviation codes are used to alert air traffic control to serious situations. Code 7700 generally indicates a general emergency, while code 7500 is internationally associated with unlawful interference or a suspected hijacking. The reports about the incident had not been independently verified.
