Netanyahu visibly moved as bloodied Flydubai hero recounts nightmare inside Israel-bound jet

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL: Yaniv Hayun walked into a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still wearing clothes stained with the blood from the chaos aboard Flydubai flight FZ1073 on Wednesday, September 30.

The Israeli passenger had helped overpower the man accused of attacking the captain and then grabbed the aircraft’s controls as the jet plunged thousands of feet.

Sitting with Netanyahu at Ben-Gurion International Airport, Hayun went back through those terrifying minutes, this time describing them face-to-face to the Israeli prime minister.

Netanyahu hails and hugs 'hero' passenger

Netanyahu listened as Hayun recounted how the situation inside the Dubai-to-Tel Aviv flight spiraled into a fight for control of the aircraft.

Hayun had no security role and was simply a passenger. 

But after realizing that the cockpit had become the scene of a violent struggle, he ran forward and joined the effort to stop the attacker.

According to Hayun’s account, he grabbed the man and put him in a chokehold before pulling him away from the cockpit.

Other passengers then joined him and helped restrain the attacker.

Netanyahu’s office later described the encounter and quoted the prime minister telling Hayun: “You are a hero. You deserve a global medal of honor.”

Hayun reportedly told Netanyahu that he had asked to change his clothes before coming to meet him. But he ultimately arrived still covered in the blood from the ordeal.

The prime minister appeared visibly moved as Hayun recounted the passengers’ extraordinary bravery. He later embraced Hayun and hailed him as a hero.

Netanyahu also praised the people who intervened during the emergency, saying their actions had prevented what could have been a catastrophic disaster.

Yaniv Hayun's heroic bravery saved lives

The most extraordinary part of Hayun’s account came after the attacker had been dragged from the cockpit.

The aircraft was already in a rapid descent. Hayun went back inside and grabbed the controls.

“I pulled the yoke up and stopped the plane’s dive,” he told Netanyahu, explaining that he had some aviation familiarity from watching the 'Mayday' air-crash series.

In another account of the encounter, Hayun described calling other Israelis to help before getting back into the cockpit and pulling the controls toward him.

“I grabbed the attacker, put him in a chokehold, and pulled him out,” he said. “I called the Israelis who were with us, jumped back in and pulled the controls. I started pulling them back.”

The aircraft had dropped dramatically in altitude during the emergency.

Flight-tracking data and official accounts indicate that the plane descended by thousands of feet in a matter of moments before the situation was brought under control.

An off-duty pilot then entered the cockpit and took over the aircraft, while Hayun returned to help keep the attacker restrained.

The plane was eventually diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely. All 174 people aboard survived.

Netanyahu praises captain's bravery

Hayun was not the only person Netanyahu singled out.

The prime minister separately paid tribute to Captain Smit Machchhar, the Indian pilot who was stabbed during the cockpit confrontation.

Despite being seriously injured, Machchhar was able to resist the attacker and open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew members to get inside and intervene.

The captain is reportedly admitted to a hospital in Tabuk city in northwest Saudi Arabia and is receiving the necessary medical attention.

Netanyahu called Machchhar a “true hero” and said his actions helped save the lives of the 174 people aboard the flight.