Netanyahu invites Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar to light Independence Day flame

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar to thank him for saving 174 lives on a flight from Dubai.

Netanyahu invited Captain Machchhar and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to light a flame on Israeli Independence Day.

Captain Machchhar stated that he is recovering after his co-pilot struck him with repeated blows to the back of the head while stepping away to pray.

The aircraft entered a steep dive during the assault before Captain Machchhar unlocked the cockpit door from the inside so people outside could intervene.

Captain Machchhar clarified that the cockpit door twists open from the inside, while entry from the outside requires an access code.

Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh stated that Captain Machchhar helped save 174 lives.

For airline passengers and Indian-origin professionals, the exchange provides an account of the cockpit intervention that averted a crash on a flight from Dubai.