Saudi Arabia Probes Flydubai Cockpit Attack

Saudi Arabia has opened an aviation safety investigation into last week’s cockpit attack aboard a flydubai Boeing 737 MAX, while the United Arab Emirates conducts a separate criminal probe into the incident, according to people familiar with the matter.

The investigation centers on flydubai flight FZ1073, which was flying through Saudi airspace on September 30 when the co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain with an axe. The Israel-bound aircraft reportedly entered a steep plunge but recovered, and all 172 people aboard escaped injury.

Saudi Arabia has notified international aviation agencies that its National Transport Safety Center will investigate the incident under global aviation rules known as Annex 13. Such safety investigations are standard following accidents but are not necessarily required when authorities suspect a deliberate criminal act.

It remains unclear whether Saudi investigators will publicly release their findings.

The US National Transportation Safety Board confirmed it has appointed a representative to participate because the aircraft involved was a US-manufactured Boeing 737 MAX. The UAE is also entitled to participate because the jet is registered there and flydubai is based in Dubai.

Meanwhile, UAE authorities have launched a criminal investigation, with the country’s prosecutor general describing the incident as a “terrorist attack.”

Israel, whose citizens accounted for nearly all passengers aboard FZ1073, has offered to participate in the Saudi-led aviation safety investigation. However, Israeli Aircraft Safety Investigation Authority director Ofer Vaknin said the country has not yet received an invitation and may not need to participate because the incident did not appear to involve an aircraft operational or technical failure.

Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have diplomatic relations, but international aviation investigations have historically enabled cooperation between countries despite political tensions.

Unlike criminal investigations, Annex 13 safety probes are intended to identify risks and prevent future accidents rather than determine legal responsibility. Aviation specialists say even deliberate cockpit incidents can produce important safety recommendations involving pilot recruitment, security procedures and cockpit protections.

Similar issues emerged following the 2015 Germanwings crash, when French aviation investigators pursued a safety investigation despite tensions with prosecutors over access to evidence.