- FlyDubai Captain Smit Mashar gave his first interview from Zayed Military Hospital in Abu Dhabi after surviving a brutal mid-flight attack
- The pilot described losing consciousness repeatedly during the assault and struggling to reach the cockpit door while fighting to stay alive
- Mashar credited his survival instinct, his crewmates, and a higher power for getting every passenger home safely
A FlyDubai captain attacked mid-flight with an axe has spoken publicly for the first time since the incident, giving a bedside interview to The National from Zayed Military Hospital in Abu Dhabi.
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Captain Smit Mashar, still recovering from his injuries, described the moment he realised the assault was not a mechanical malfunction. His first instinct when the blows began was that something had catastrophically failed in the aircraft's structure.
"I thought something had gone drastically wrong with the airframe and it had fallen on my head," he said.
It was only when the strikes continued, and he caught a brief glimpse of what was happening, that the reality became clear.
The Moments That Nearly Cost Him His Life
Mashar told the journalist that the attack came without warning during what had been a routine flight. He said he noticed nothing unusual in the limited exchanges he had with the individual before the assault began. Once he understood what was happening, he unbuckled his harness and tried to deflect the blows, sustaining a serious wound in the process.
The captain described losing and regaining consciousness repeatedly as the attack continued, each physical effort causing him to black out again.
He heard the cockpit door open and a confrontation between his co-pilot and the attacker, then a sound he described as among the most frightening of the entire ordeal: the engines throttling back at a critical phase of flight, followed by the nose pitching sharply downward.
He said he kept searching for the cockpit door, driven by the knowledge that if he stopped trying, no one would survive.
"Did I give up? I tell you 100% I did not give up," he said. "But was I sure I would make it? No."
His thoughts in those moments went to prayer and to his children. A senior cabin crew member ultimately intervened and helped bring the situation under control.
Recovery, Gratitude and a Promise to Fly Again
Mashar woke from surgery in Saudi Arabia to learn that UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan had personally arranged for him to be transferred home. He said that news produced the first smile he had managed since the attack.
He praised the care provided at Zayed Military Hospital and expressed deep gratitude to the UAE, a country where he has lived for around four and a half years and which he considers home.
When asked whether the attack had diminished his love of flying, his answer was immediate.
"Did my love for aviation die? Never. Never," he said, adding that he expected to return to the cockpit soon.
He also called on the aviation industry to study what happened and strengthen safety procedures, though he stopped short of assigning blame to any individual or authority.
Watch Captain Smit Mashar's full bedside interview with The National.
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Source: TUKO.co.ke