Subscribe to our WhatsApp Channel
A hijack attempt aboard Flydubai flight FZ1073 on September 30, 2026, set social media buzzing. The flight was carrying more than 170 passengers and crew from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the first officer planned to crash the aircraft, but the captain and the passengers foiled the attempt. As the story spread, several old videos from unrelated events were shared as footage from the flight. Here are the posts that carried them.
Claim 1 – Social Media Posts:
A video showing an aircraft plunging from the sky was shared as a scene from the Flydubai incident, as seen below.
We set out to check whether this was true.
Fact-Check:
The Falling Aircraft Is an Azul Plane, Not a Flydubai Jet
One scene in the video shows an aircraft plunging rapidly. International official sources and news outlets confirmed that flight FZ1073 landed safely at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia. International media aired several genuine videos recorded by passengers on mobile phones, but none identified this video as footage of the incident.
On closer inspection, the aircraft in the video is not a Flydubai plane. It is an aircraft operated by the Brazilian airline Azul.
Below is a photo comparison of the aircraft in the video and a Flydubai aircraft. Flydubai planes have a distinct colour scheme from Azul aircraft.
The Video Was Online 15 Days Before the Incident
Our reverse image search found that the aircraft-crash video was posted on YouTube on September 15, 2026, 15 days before the Flydubai incident.
The same video was posted on YouTube again on September 18, 2026, as shown below.
It was posted once more on September 19, 2026. That version is a landscape-format video of an Azul aircraft making a routine landing.
The video was then rotated 90 degrees to portrait and shared on social media as footage of an aircraft crash.
Claim 2
Social Media Posts:
Another video was shared on social media as footage of passengers leaving a Flydubai aircraft through emergency exits, as seen below.
These claims were viral on TikTok as well.
We set out to check whether this was true.
Fact-Check:
The Evacuation Video Shows a July 2025 Incident at Denver Airport
The viral video shows a group of people running out of an aircraft’s emergency exit. Our reverse image search found that it was posted on the Associated Press YouTube channel on July 28, 2025.
The AP post states: “According to authorities, passengers descended via an emergency slide after an aircraft problem at Denver International Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said American Airlines flight 3023 had a ‘landing gear incident’ while departing Denver on Saturday afternoon. The airline said the problem involved one of the aircraft’s tires.”
The video was also posted on July 27, 2025, by the “Forbes Breaking News” channel. It states that passengers had to evacuate the American Airlines aircraft this way because of a fire caused by a landing gear problem at Denver International Airport.
A CNN US report of July 27, 2025, also states that over 150 passengers on an American Airlines flight due to depart Denver International Airport for Miami were evacuated onto the runway after a landing gear problem caused a fire, and one person was injured. The Boeing 737 MAX 8 had a tire-related problem before takeoff. American Airlines and Denver International Airport said airport emergency units and the Denver Fire Department responded.
This shows the viral video relates to an older incident and has no connection to the recent Flydubai incident.
Claim 3
Social Media Posts:
A video was shared on social media as footage of passengers joyfully celebrating after the aircraft landed at Tabuk Airport, as seen below.
Fact-Check:
The Celebration Video Shows Basketball Player Yam Madar in 2025
No international media reported this video as footage of passengers celebrating after the Flydubai aircraft landed safely, so we ran its scenes through a reverse image search.
We found that it was uploaded to a Facebook page on August 26, 2025. The news website link on that page showed that the clip was of Israeli basketball player Yam Madar celebrating and playing music with fellow passengers on an aircraft.
Madar is an Israeli basketball player who plays for EuroLeague team Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv.
Our check therefore confirmed that the video shared as passengers celebrating after the Flydubai aircraft landed safely is an old clip from 2025 of Israeli basketball player Yam Madar celebrating with fellow passengers on an aircraft.
Investigators Say the Flydubai Hijack Attempt Was Premeditated
According to international media reports, investigations found that the hijack attempt aboard Flydubai flight FZ1073, flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30, was planned in advance by the first officer, who was inspired by al-Qaeda.
About two and a half hours after takeoff, in Saudi airspace, Omani first officer Hamam Al-Hamami struck the captain, Indian national Smith Machhar, from behind with an emergency weapon kept in the cockpit. He then destroyed the control panel and tried to bring the plane down, sending it plunging from 14,000 to 17,000 feet. The pilots together subdued him and landed the plane safely at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia, saving all 174 people aboard.
International investigators say the suspect had previously been removed from Oman Air over extremist website activity. Security agencies in six countries, including the Australian Federal Police, have launched a joint investigation into his Australian links. He is currently in UAE custody. More information is available here and here.
Join us to learn more about our fact-check investigations.
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Google News | TikTok
Conclusion:
Our fact-check found that the videos shared as footage of the recent Flydubai incident are misleading. The video of an aircraft plunging from the sky shows a plane of Brazil’s Azul Airlines, not a Flydubai jet. YouTube uploads dated September 15, 18 and 19, 2026 show it online before the September 30 incident, and the original landscape clip shows a routine landing.
The second video is old footage of an American Airlines evacuation at Denver International Airport after a landing gear problem. The Associated Press posted it on July 28, 2025, and CNN reported the incident.
The third video is an old 2025 clip of Israeli basketball player Yam Madar celebrating with fellow passengers on an aircraft. None of the three videos has any connection to Flydubai flight FZ1073, which landed safely at Tabuk Airport with all 174 people aboard.
Title: Flydubai FZ1073 Videos Are Misleading: Old Clips Unrelated to the Hijack Attempt
Fact Check By: B. P. Hansani
Result: Misleading
