Identities of pilots who landed hijacked FlyDubai plane after attack on Captain Smit Machchhar revealed

The identities of two off-duty pilots who landed a FlyDubai aircraft after the captain was attacked during a hijack attempt have been revealed.FlyDubai Flight 1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv plunged 16,000ft in 30 seconds on 30 September before the attacker was overwhelmed and two other pilots who were on board were able to safely land in Saudi Arabia.Captain Smit Machchhar was attacked by his co-pilot with an axe in the cockpit of the flight, before the suspect was overwhelmed by passengers.Henson Steven from Fiji and South Africa's Rowan Tooth jumped in to take control of the aircraft and landed the plane safely in Saudi Arabia. UAE president Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan last week awarded Mr Steven, Mr Tooth and the rest of the crew the First Class Order of Zayed II “in recognition of their courageous efforts to ensure the safety of passengers".Both the off-duty pilots were on board to pilot the aircraft for its return flight, according to Times of Israel.Mr Steven previously worked as a pilot for Fiji Airways, while Mr Tooth worked for South African airline Airlink until 2023.Captain Machchhar, who sustained life-threatening injuries, was also presented with the First Class Order of Zayed II award – one of the highest civilian awards in the UAE.Wearing a sling and with stitches in the back of his head, he told the UAE president that it would still be another two months before he heals fully.“I have an idea. When you heal, I want to have a session with you to train you how to fight,” the Emirati president told him, suggesting he would benefit from learning jiu-jitsu.“It’s my biggest honour,” replied the captain.The Boeing 737 aircraft with around 150 Israeli passengers on board was in Saudi airspace when the co-pilot attacked Machchhar with a crash axe, typically kept in the cockpit for emergency use.UAE public prosecutors have said the plan was inspired by the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.Speaking from a hospital bed in Abu Dhabi earlier this month, Captain Machchhar said that when the first blow landed, he thought something had gone “horribly wrong the aircraft structure”, before quickly realising he was being attacked.Captain Machchhar was covered with blood and on the floor when he managed to open the cockpit door, a spokesperson for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.Yaniv Hayun, one of the men who incapacitated the attacker, described running to the cockpit as the plane nosedived.“We pulled the assailant out, I pulled him out. After I pulled him out we took control of the plane, I pulled up the yoke (steering control of the plane), I straightened the plane out a bit,” he said.Mr Netanyahu earlier said that the co-pilot, whom he identified as an Omani national, had undergone radical Islamist indoctrination but that so far a motive for his actions had not been established.