[Video below.] President Trump weighed in Wednesday on the extraordinary attempted takeover of a flydubai flight bound for Israel, saying he had spoken “at length” with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu about the incident and praising the Israeli passenger who wrestled the alleged attacker away from the controls and helped pull the plunging aircraft out of its dive.

Trump cautioned that the precise motive of the co-pilot remained unclear, reflecting the continuing investigation into whether Wednesday’s cockpit attack was terrorism or had another explanation.

“It seems as though the copilot was perhaps a terrorist or perhaps a whack-job,” Trump told reporters.

🚨 President Trump just explained what happened on FlyDubai flight after speaking at length with Netanyahu.

Co-pilot — “perhaps a terrorist or perhaps a whack job” — STABBED the pilot. Plane going down so sharp the rudder RIPPED OFF.

Then an Israeli plumber who NEVER flew a… https://t.co/MCA1Bcyi0H pic.twitter.com/LWEcDdcG89

— Mr Producer (@RichSementa) September 30, 2026

The incident occurred aboard flydubai Flight FZ1073, a Boeing 737 MAX traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv with 174 people aboard. Israeli officials say the Omani co-pilot stabbed Captain Smit Machchhar, the Indian captain of the aircraft, and then apparently attempted to crash the jet. Flydubai itself has publicly confirmed an “altercation” on the flight deck, while the suspect’s motive remains under investigation.

Flight data showed the aircraft plunging nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds during the crisis. The plane transmitted the 7500 transponder code used to signal unlawful interference, prompting Israeli fighter jets to be dispatched as the drama unfolded.

Trump offered a vivid account of what he had been told happened aboard the aircraft, singling out Israeli passenger Yaniv Hayoun, a plumber who was among those who rushed toward the cockpit after hearing the commotion.

“An Israeli plumber saw what was happening. And he saw what was going on and he heard the screaming. The plane was going sharply down at an unbelievable angle, so sharp that the rudder ripped off the back of the plane. The plane wasn’t designed to go at a speed anywhere near that.”

Trump then described how the passenger allegedly pulled the co-pilot away from the aircraft’s controls before trying to stop the jet’s descent himself.

“And he ripped this guy out of the seat, threw him back, the crowd got him, the passengers got him, grabbed him. And having never flown a plane, he took the stick, lifted it up, and leveled out the plane before it crashed,” Trump said of the passenger.

Trump emphasized that he was recounting information relayed to him rather than independently vouching for every detail.

“Now this is the story that I heard, I don’t know if it’s true, but that’s the story that I got. I think it’s amazing,” he added.

Hayoun’s own account broadly corroborates the central elements of the dramatic story. He said that after the aircraft suddenly began diving, passengers heard screaming and realized that something catastrophic was occurring inside the cockpit.

Captain Machchhar, despite suffering serious stab wounds, apparently managed to open the cockpit door before collapsing, allowing passengers to reach the flight deck and confront the co-pilot.

Netanyahu met Hayoun after the passengers finally returned to Israel and asked him to describe what happened.

“Someone screamed, and the lights went out. Someone wearing a white shirt stood by the door. Together, we pushed the door. The pilot who was stabbed was at the door, but he apparently managed to open it before collapsing. When I went in, I saw the terrorist on the devices between the two chairs.”

Hayoun said he immediately grabbed the co-pilot and dragged him away from the controls as other passengers joined the struggle.

“I grabbed the terrorist, choked him, and pulled him away from there. He tried to ruin the devices to neutralize the plane, which had its nose pointing down. I called another two guys who helped me grab him. I began to pull the steering wheel up, and I stopped the plane from diving.”

Perhaps the most remarkable detail was how Hayoun said he knew what to do with the controls despite never having flown an aircraft.

Hayoun told Israeli media that he had watched the television documentary series “Mayday,” known in the United States as “Air Disasters,” which reconstructs aviation catastrophes and explains how pilots respond to emergencies. He remembered from the program that pulling back on the control column would raise the aircraft’s nose.

With the co-pilot restrained and the aircraft no longer plunging uncontrollably, two additional flydubai pilots who happened to be traveling aboard the flight were able to enter the cockpit and assume control. They diverted the aircraft to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely.

The alleged attacker was taken into Saudi custody, while Machchhar was treated for his injuries. Investigators are trying to determine whether the co-pilot acted alone and what motivated the attack.

Israeli authorities are treating the incident as a suspected terror attack while also investigating whether the co-pilot intended to seize the aircraft over Jordan and deliberately crash it inside Israel. No organizational or state connection has yet been publicly established.

The incident has already prompted Israel to announce plans for tighter security screening of pilots operating flights into the country, including foreign airline crews, as officials examine how an individual legitimately seated inside the cockpit could be assessed for potential security threats.

For Trump, however, the most extraordinary part of the story was the intervention of an ordinary Israeli passenger who found himself confronting an alleged attacker inside the cockpit of a diving commercial airliner — and then reached for the controls himself.

“Now this is the story that I heard, I don’t know if it’s true, but that’s the story that I got. I think it’s amazing,” Trump said.