Israel weighs special flight to bring citizens home after Flydubai emergency landing
Israel is considering sending a special aircraft to Saudi Arabia to bring home Israelis and other passengers aboard a Flydubai flight that made an emergency landing in Tabuk following an incident in the air.
According to CNN, Israeli officials are examining the possibility of sending either a military aircraft or a passenger plane operated by national carrier El Al to Saudi Arabia to bring the passengers back.
A Flydubai spokesperson said all passengers aboard the flight were safe and that efforts were underway to arrange an alternative aircraft to take them to their destination.
According to a statement issued by Saudi aviation operator Cluster 2, Flydubai flight FZ1073 called for an emergency landing at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk at 8:44am local time.
An emergency was declared at the airport following the call, and the aircraft landed safely about an hour later.
Both the captain and co-pilot were injured and taken to hospital, while passengers received medical assistance inside the airport terminal.
CNN reported that Israeli officials suspect the incident may have been an attempted terrorist attack and that the possibility was being investigated.
According to preliminary information, the co-pilot allegedly attempted to attack the captain with a knife during the flight. An Israeli passenger on board reportedly helped restrain the co-pilot.
CNN reported that Israeli officials said the alleged attacker was one of the two pilots and that the pilot was from Oman.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also cancelled his schedule after being informed of the incident and began emergency consultations with senior security officials, according to the report.
Flydubai is a state-owned airline of the United Arab Emirates that operates flights from Dubai to destinations across the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Asia. The airline was established by the Dubai government in 2008 through the Dubai Aviation Corporation.
Air links between Dubai and Israel expanded significantly after the two countries normalised relations in 2020.
According to flight-tracking website Flightradar24, around 70 flights normally operate between Dubai and Tel Aviv each week. Flydubai operates the largest number of flights on the route, while UAE carrier Emirates and Israeli airlines Israir and El Al also serve the route.
Dubai has also become an important aviation and tourism hub for Israeli travellers since the normalisation of relations.
Data released by Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport showed that around 1.1 million Israeli passengers travelled to Dubai in 2025.