Washington, Oct 6: US Congressman Josh Gottheimer introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives honouring Indian pilot Smit Machchhar for showing extraordinary courage in protecting every passenger aboard the flydubai flight 1073.
Gottheimer, the Democratic Congressman from New Jersey, in his resolution also commended the heroic actions of the off-duty pilots, cabin crew, and passengers who secured the flight deck and brought the aircraft safely down.
The resolution, introduced in the House of Representatives on Monday, condemns the attack on flydubai Flight 1073 as an act of terrorism and as an attack on the safety of international civil aviation.
It also calls for a full and expeditious investigation by the Governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and for the United States and Israel to be kept fully informed.
Captain Machchhar foiled an alleged attempt by the co-pilot to crash an Israel-bound flight. He was attacked and seriously injured by his co-pilot in the cockpit of flydubai flight FZ1073 on Wednesday while the aircraft was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv.
An Omani citizen, Hamam al-Hammami, has been identified as the flydubai co-pilot who attacked Machchhar and allegedly attempted to take control of the flight, according to reports published by multiple news outlets, including the Wall Street Journal and CNN.
Al-Hammami was previously barred from flying in Oman over concerns about his radical ideological views, the reports said, quoting people familiar with the matter.
He attacked Machchhar with a crash axe, typically kept in the cockpit for use in emergencies, seriously injuring him. The motive for the attack remains unclear.
The flight, carrying 174 passengers, transmitted emergency signals and made a rapid descent of more than 17,000 feet from 34,000 feet.
Captain Machchhar was lying injured on the cockpit floor when he realised the plane was descending but managed to push open the cockpit door, which enabled passengers to overpower the attacker.
Two reserve pilots landed the aircraft safely at Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Airport in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk city, where al-Hammami was taken into custody and Machchhar was taken to a nearby hospital before being airlifted to Abu Dhabi. (PTI)
