Flydubai cockpit attack: Saudi Arabia launches air safety probe to examine risks after mid-air stabbing

Saudi Arabia has opened an air crash investigation into last week’s cockpit stabbing of a flydubai jet as experts examine any impact on aviation safety alongside a separate criminal probe led by the UAE, three people close to the matter said.

Safety probes designed to ensure the safety of flights are normal after accidents, but not mandatory in the case of a deliberate act such as the co-pilot’s alleged attempt to shoot down a flydubai flight bound for Israel on September 30.

Until now, it remained unclear whether Saudi Arabia would pursue such an investigation, which experts say could test a system of international cooperation designed to make security recommendations without trying to assign blame.

People familiar with the matter said Saudi Arabia had informed specialized aviation agencies abroad that it would conduct a safety investigation under international rules into flight FZ1073, which was in Saudi airspace when the co-pilot attacked the captain with an axe.

Saudi Arabia’s National Center for Transport Safety, which is in charge of investigating the accidents, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Saudi government and the country’s regulator also did not respond to requests for comment.

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, which would be closely involved in any probe because the Boeing 737 MAX plane that survived the crash was designed and built in the United States, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Officials in the United Arab Emirates did not respond to requests for comment. Under international rules, the United Arab Emirates would automatically be involved as the plane is registered there and the airline is based in Dubai.

The United Arab Emirates has already launched a separate criminal investigation into the incident, which its attorney general described as a “terrorist attack”.

Israel, whose citizens made up nearly all of the 172 people on board, has offered to participate in any safety investigation led by Saudi Arabia but has not yet been invited, the head of the country’s air accident agency told Reuters.

“We are still awaiting notification from Saudi Arabia to invite us to participate in the investigation,” said Ofer Vaknin, director of the Office of Aircraft Safety Investigation.

Saudi Arabia and Israel do not maintain diplomatic relations, although experts say a decades-old system of accident prevention cooperation widely credited with significantly reducing accidents may cross political lines.