Captain C.S. Randhawa calls the cockpit attack on Indian pilot Smit Machchhar unprecedented in his 50-year aviation career and urges a thorough investigation into the incident.
Mumbai, October 2026 : Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) President Captain C.S. Randhawa on Thursday said the Flydubai flight FZ1073, in which Indian captain Smit Machchhar was allegedly attacked by his co-pilot, could have crashed had a third pilot not been present to help bring the aircraft to a safe landing.
Speaking about the incident, Randhawa said he had never witnessed such violence inside an aircraft cockpit during his five decades in aviation. He stressed that investigators must establish the sequence of events before drawing conclusions about the motive behind the alleged attack.
“I have never come across such kind of bloodshed in the cockpit in 50 years of my aviation career,” Randhawa said, adding that statements from crew members, passengers and the third pilot would be crucial to understanding what happened.
He said the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) would be a key piece of evidence in determining when the altercation began and how it developed. The digital flight data recorder would also provide critical information, including the aircraft’s altitude, the point at which it began descending, the descent pattern and the sequence of control inputs.
Randhawa explained that cockpit audio recordings could help investigators identify which pilot was speaking through the respective microphone and capture conversations picked up by the overhead microphone. Such recordings could also provide information about what passengers said while inside the cockpit, helping investigators reconstruct the incident.
According to the FIP president, these technical records, alongside eyewitness accounts, would be essential to establishing responsibility and understanding the circumstances that led to the confrontation.
Terrorism Angle Cannot Be Ruled In or Out Yet
Randhawa cautioned against describing the incident as an act of terrorism before the investigation is complete. He said investigators would need to examine the co-pilot’s intentions, possible affiliations and any evidence of deliberate planning if a terrorist motive were suspected.
“There are also theories about terrorism and a deliberate attempt. I think it is premature to say that there was an act of terror, because that has to be established,” he said.
He added that if the incident involved a suicide attempt, the actions of the pilot who resisted the alleged attacker and the person who helped land the aircraft safely deserved recognition.
“If a third pilot was not present, the aircraft would have crashed,” Randhawa underlined, warning that the situation could have resulted in a major aviation tragedy.
He also described a possible sequence in which a verbal disagreement escalated into a physical confrontation and eventually involved a weapon. However, he emphasised that this was a possible explanation and not an established account of the incident.
Concerns Over Flight Safety
Randhawa said a physical struggle inside the cockpit could have had serious consequences for aircraft control. If a pilot had become unrestrained and accidentally struck the control column, the autopilot could have disengaged, potentially causing the aircraft to descend sharply.
He identified crew resource management (CRM) failure as one possible area for investigators to examine, alongside any evidence of deliberate action.
Calling the incident a major wake-up call for the aviation industry, Randhawa also advocated regular psychometric assessments for pilots to identify stress-related concerns and other factors that could affect cockpit safety.
“Psychometric tests for pilots should be introduced in the Indian aviation sector as well,” he said, adding that regular assessments could form part of broader efforts to strengthen aviation safety.
Randhawa reiterated that investigators must rely on evidence from flight recorders, witness statements and other findings before reaching a final conclusion about the incident.
