Plane made emergency landing after pilot tried to crash aircraft, Israeli PM says, as officials investigate whether it was an attempted terror attack

One of the pilots of a plane flying from the UAE to Israel stabbed his co-pilot and appeared to try to crash the plane, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said, as Israeli officials said they were investigating whether the incident was an attempted terror attack on Israelis. Here is what we know so far:

A commercial plane travelling from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates to Israel was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia, after an apparent brawl between its pilots prompted distress signals that briefly raised fears of an attempted hijacking. The FlyDubai flight was over Jordan when it diverted to Saudi Arabia, transmitting three emergency signals, one of which indicated a possible unlawful interference.

The plane dipped dramatically during the reported fight, descending about 16,000ft in just two minutes. Israeli officials scrambled fighter jets, fearful of a possible hijacking attempt on a plane containing dozens of Israelis, and the plane landed at Tabuk airport in north-western Saudi Arabia.

Netanyahu said one of the FlyDubai pilots stabbed his co-pilot and appeared to be intending to crash the plane. He added that one of the passengers on the flight managed to break into the cockpit with one of the crew members, and together they “neutralised” the attacking pilot.

Netanyahu described it as “an extremely severe security incident”. Other officials, including the defence minister, Israel Katz, have called it an attempted terrorist attack. Netanyahu thanked the passengers and crew who helped to stop the attack, saying they “showed exceptional resourcefulness and courage”.

An Israeli official has identified the attacker as an Omani national, Reuters reported.

The Boeing 737 plane, which Israeli officials said had between 160 and 180 passengers onboard, transmitted a general emergency signal about two and a half hours after departing from Dubai, according to the flight-tracking website Flightradar24.

A passenger on the flight, Miryam Shira Ohayon, said the plane was “pretty much out of control” when the alleged stabbing took place. “The co-pilot tried to murder the pilot and basically carry out a suicide attack on the plane,” she told reporters, using a speakerphone held up by her mother who was waiting at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv.

The plane transmitted the initial general emergency signal again before landing at Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk airport. Tabuk airport said the plane landed at 9.45am local time and that both pilots were taken to hospital after sustaining injuries.

A second FlyDubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv landed safely at its destination. Flightradar24 initially showed flight FZ1081 diverting back towards the UAE but it was later shown to be on its way to Israel, where it landed in Tel Aviv this afternoon.