Who is Captain Smit Machchhar, the flydubai pilot who opened the cockpit door

Until Wednesday, Smit Machchhar was a captain with flydubai, the Dubai-based airline, known mainly to his colleagues and passengers. By Friday the Prime Minister of India was on a video call with him, temples across the country were holding prayers for his recovery, and a sand artist had built his likeness on a beach in Odisha.

The pilot

Machchhar is an Indian national. He was born in Mumbai and his family comes from Gujarat, according to PTI; when Narendra Modi spoke to him, the two switched briefly into Gujarati. He told Modi he has been flying for 17 years and has been a captain for the last 11. "Even with my eyes closed, I know exactly what is happening with the aircraft," he said.

He lives abroad with his family, which includes a son aged two.

What he did

On 30 September Machchhar was in command of flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, with 174 passengers on board, when his first officer stabbed him in the cockpit and the aircraft went into a dive.

On the floor and badly wounded, he reached the cockpit door and opened it, letting passengers in to overpower the attacker. Two off-duty pilots who were on board then landed the aircraft in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

He has been careful to share the credit. "Then everyone else arrived. The others also played an equal role in this," he told Modi. Israel plans to honour several passengers who went into the cockpit.

Faith and family

Machchhar says he turns to the Hanuman Chalisa whenever he is afraid, and that he kept reciting it through the attack. He recites it regularly with his son, he said, and his family has held on to its traditions while living outside India. "I am away from the country, not from our culture," he told the Prime Minister.

Modi credited his mother, Geetaben, with raising him on the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita.

How India responded

Modi first praised him on X on Thursday, writing that Machchhar had "prevented another 9/11 like attack from happening" and that "140 crore Indians salute Captain Smit". The next day, Gandhi Jayanti, he called the captain and told him he had shown the world the true meaning of ahimsa.

Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik made a sculpture of Machchhar on the beach at Puri on Thursday. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel has announced a state award for him, Open magazine reported.

Recovery

Machchhar is being treated at a hospital in the UAE after being moved from Saudi Arabia. He told Modi he was receiving the best possible care and expected a slow recovery. "It will take time, but I am very, very confident that I will recover. And I will be completely healthy," he said.

"India is waiting to welcome you," the Prime Minister told him.