What to know about the terrifying FlyDubai flight forced to land in Saudi Arabia

One pilot stabs another as he attempts to take control of a flight from the United Arab Emirates to Israel with the aim of crashing it, according to Israel's prime minister. Passengers, many of whom are Israelis, fear for their lives as the FlyDubai aircraft loses half its altitude in about a minute. As Israel scrambles fighter jets out of concern for a possible hijacking, a passenger and crew member break into the cockpit to subdue the attacker and other crew members gain control of the aircraft, which lands safely in Saudi Arabia. The terrifying incident on Wednesday occurred just days before the anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that launched the war in Gaza. It has rekindled anxieties about airline security and focused attention on an unsettling question: Are pilots a significant threat to the flying public's safety? Here’s what we know — and don’t know — about what happened on FlyDubai flight FZ1073: A fight, an alert and a rapid descent The distress call came at 8:44 a.m. local time, about two and a half hours after the flight with about 170 passengers left Du