Flydubai passenger details putting attacker in CHOKEHOLD after cockpit stabbing

♪. >> Ashley: PANIC UNFOLDING ON A. PACKED PLANE OVER THE MIDDLE. EAST T STATE DEPARTMENT. CONFIRMING FOUR AMERICANS WERE. ONBOARD A FLIGHT TO ISRAEL WHEN. THE PILOT WAS ALLEGEDLY ATTACKED. BY HIS CO-PILOT CAUSING THE. PLANE TO PLUMMET THOUSANDS OF. FEET IN THE AIR. >> HEARING FROM THE HERO. PASSENGER WHO PUT THE ATTACKER. IN A CHOKE HOLD TO HELP SAVE. EVERYONE ON BOARD. CHIEF FORRENT CORRESPONDENT TREY. YINGST JOINS US LIVE FROM TEL. AVIV WITH THE VERY LATEST. TREY.

>> Reporter: HEY GUYS, GOOD. MORNING. WE ARE LEARNING NEW DETAILS. ABOUT THOSE HEROIC ISRAELI. PASSENGERS WHO WERE ON THE. FLIGHT YESTERDAY HEADED TOWARD. TEL AVIV. AFTER THE CAPTAIN WAS STABBED BY. HIS CO-PILOT, THE JET PLUNGED. MORE THAN 14,000 FEET IN JUST 37. SECONDS. THE INJURED PILOT HAD THE. WHEREWITHAL TO OPEN THE COCKPIT. DOOR AVERTING DISASTER THAT'S. WHEN THE PASSENGERS JUMPED INTO. ACTION MAKING THEIR WAY INTO THE. COCKPIT SUBDUING THE PILOT WHO. WAS ATTEMPTING TO CRASH THE JET. EVEN MORE REMARKABLE AN ISRAELI.

PLUMBER THEN PULLED BACK ON THE. YOKE TO PREVENT THE PLANE FROM. DIVING FURTHER. >> THERE WERE NO PILOTS ON THE. SEATS. ONE WAS ON THE FLOOR, THE OTHER. ON THE EQUIPMENT. ANOTHER PERSON WALKED IN WITH. ME. I GRABBED THE ATTACKER, I. STRANGLED HIM AND PULLED HIM. OUT. I PULLED THE CONTROL YOKE. >> YOU PULLED THE STEERING. WHEEL? >> YES, BACK, BACK. I WATCH AIR CRASH INVESTIGATION, MR. PRIME MINISTER. >> Reporter: AVIATION EXPERTS.

HAVE CALLED THIS A MIRACLE, MORE. THAN 170 SOULS WERE ON BOARD. WITH THE PLANE PLUMMETING TOWARD. THE DESERT IN SAUDI ARABIA WELL. BEYOND SPEEDS THE AIRCRAFT IS. BUILT TO SUPPORT. ULTIMATELY OTHER OFF-DUTY PILOTS. ON THE FLIGHT WERE ABLE TO LAND. THE 737 IN SAUDI ARABIA. THE PASSENGERS RECEIVED A HERO'S. WELCOME ONCE BACK SAFELY IN TEL. AVIV AFTER TAKING OFF ON ANOTHER. PLANE. >> PEOPLE WERE ALREADY SAYING. THEIR PRAYERS. THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE GOING TO. ALL CRASH AND DIE, AND THEY WERE. SAVED. SAVED BY HEROES, BY THE INDIAN.

PILOT, BY THE ISRAELI PASSENGER, BY THE OTHERS WHO CAME TO THEIR. HELP. HE WAS COMPLETELY STAINED WITH. THE BLOOD OF THIS PILOT WHO WAS. ALMOST BUTCHERED TO DEATH BY. THIS ATTACK OF. >> Reporter: THE INVESTIGATION. IS NOW TURNED TO THE ATTACKER. TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHERE HE IS. FROM AND WHAT HIS SPECIFIC. MOTIVES MAY BE. FlyDUBAI IN THE MEANTIME HAS. CANCELLED ALL FLIGHTS TO AND. FROM ISRAEL AS THIS. INVESTIGATION UNFOLDS. GUYS. >> Todd: TREY THANK YOU WITH.

THAT LET'S BRING IN RA MYERS A. PARAMEDIC GREETING PASSENGERS ON. THE GROUND WHEN THEY LANDED IN. ISRAEL. ARI DESCRIBE WHAT YOU SAW, WHAT. YOU HEARD AS PEOPLE WERE COMING. OFF THAT PLANE. >> ISRAEL'S NATIONAL EMERGENCY. MEDICAL SERVICE AND AS SUCH FROM. THE FIRST MOMENTS THAT WE. STARTED RECEIVING ALERTS AS TO. THIS INCIDENT ON THIS PLANE, WE. STARTED COORDINATING WITH OTHER. SECURITY SERVICES IN THE STATE. OF ISRAEL IN ORDER TO PREPARE.

FOR WHAT MIGHT BE HAPPENING. ONCE WE KNEW THAT THE FLIGHT WAS. GOING TO BE LANDING AT THE. AIRPORT WE SENT PARAMEDICS. AMBULANCES AND INTENSIVE CARE. UNITS TO THE AIRPORT TO MEET THE. PASSENGERS STRAIGHT OFF THE. FLIGHT. WE MET THEM ON THE TARMAC, DID. AN INITIAL ASSESSMENT TO SEE IF. ANYBODY ACTUALLY NEEDED ANY. MEDICAL TREATMENT. WE KNEW THERE WERE A FEW MINOR. INJURIES AMONGST THEM BUT WE. WERE CONCERNED THAT THERE. WEREN'T GOING TO BE THE SOME. PEOPLE WHO WERE MORE SERIOUSLY. INJURED AND WE DID AN INITIAL. ASSESSMENT ON THE TARMAC AND A. REPEAT ASSESSMENT ONCE THE.

PASSENGERS WERE TAKEN TO THE. TERMINAL THEY WERE ASSESSED ONCE. MORE TO MAKE SURE EVERYBODY WAS. OKAY AND LUCKILY WE ONLY HAD TO. TREAT THREE PEOPLE AND ONLY ONE. OF WHOM ACTUALLY REQUIRED. HOSPITAL TREATMENT AND HE WAS. EVACUATED BY ONE OF OUR. AMBULANCES TO A NEARBY HOSPITAL. >> Todd: I IMAGINE IN A. SITUATION LIKE THIS, YOU'RE IN A. LITTLE BIT OF SHOCK AS A. PASSENGER BUT YOU'RE ALSO KIND. OF AT LEAST SOME OF THEM TALKING. A LOT. WHAT WERE THEY TELLING YOU? >> MOST OF THEM WERE SHOWING. SIGNS OF RELIEF, SIGNS OF JOY, A.

FEW PEOPLE CAME OFF THE PLANE. CRYING. THEY WERE TELLING US, I SPOKE TO. A COUPLE OF THE LITTLE KIDS THAT. WERE ON THE FLIGHT AS WELL. THEY TOLD US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT. WHAT THEY WERE EXPERIENCING. I VERY CLEARLY REMEMBER ONE. LITTLE KID WHO WAS TELLING ME. THAT THEY THOUGHT AT THE. BEGINNING IT WAS LIKE A ROLLER. COASTER RIDE WHICH WAS QUITE A. WAY TO DESCRIBE IT, BUT LUCKILY. LIKE I SAID THERE WERE VERY, VERY FEW ACTUAL INJURIES AND THE. HEROISM OF SEVERAL PEOPLE ON. THAT FLIGHT WITH THE STORY ENDED.

THE WAY IT DID AND NOT IN A REAL. TRAGEDY. >> Todd: FOR THOSE PASSENGERS. THAT ENDED UP RUSHING THE. COCKPIT DID ANY OF THEM HAVE ANY. PARTICULAR INJURIES. >> ONE OF THEM RECEIVED A MINOR. LACERATION TO HIS HEAD, ANOTHER. ONE RECEIVED SOME CHEST INJURIES. AND A GENTLEMAN IN HIS 50s WHO. WAS TAKEN TO HOSPITAL WITH. POTENTIAL FRACTURES. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, IT WOULD. SEEM THERE WAS PRETTY MUCH UNDER. CONTROL WITHIN A FAIRLY BRIEF. PERIOD OF TIME AND LUCKILY.

WITHOUT ANY SERIOUS INJURIES. OTHER THAN THE PILOT HIMSELF. >> Todd: SURE. >> THE CAPTAIN WHO WAS OBVIOUSLY. VERY SERIOUSLY JARRED LET'S GET. INTO HIM. FROM A MEDICAL PERSPECTIVE, THIS. IS YOUR AREA OF EXPERTISE, HOW. DID THE PILOT MANAGE TO ONE, TURN ON THE INTERCOM SYSTEM AND, TWO, KICK OPEN THE COCKPIT DOOR. WHICH, YOU KNOW, COCKPIT DOORS. ARE NOW BASICALLY SEALED FROM. THE REST OF THE PLANE SO THAT. SOMEBODY CAN'T RUSH INTO THE. COCKPIT. HERE YOU HAVE THE REVERSE. WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THIS PILOT. BEING ABLE TO DO ALL THAT AFTER.

BEING STABBED AS SERIOUSLY AS HE. WAS? >> I'M NOT AVIATION EXPERT BUT I. CAN IMAGINE THAT HE HAD A HUGE. ADRENALINE RUSH WHICH HELPED HIM. COPE WITH THE INITIAL MOMENTS OF. THE SITUATION, AND THEY TRAIN IN. A SIMILAR WAY TO PARAMEDICS, THEY TRAIN FOR THE WORST. POSSIBLE SCENARIO. AND HE WAS OBVIOUSLY ALERT. ENOUGH AND AWARE ENOUGH TO. REALIZE THAT HE NEEDED THAT. ASSISTANCE, HE NEEDED TO OPEN. THE DOOR, HE NEEDED TO GET THE. HELP FROM THE OTHER PEOPLE.

AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT HE DID. HIS BODY WENT INTO FIGHT MODE. AND LUCKILY THAT'S WHAT SAVED. NOT ONLY HIM BUT ALSO SAVED THE. OTHER PASSENGERS THAT WERE ON. THE PLANE. >> Todd: WHAT DO YOU KNOW, IF. ANYTHING, ABOUT HIS INJURIES AND. HIS PROSPECTS FOR RECOVERY GOING. FORWARD? >> I KNOW THAT HE WAS SERIOUSLY. INJURED. I DON'T KNOW ANY DETAILS. AND I KNOW HE WAS RECEIVING. TREATMENT IN SAUDI ARABIA, AND. WE PRAY AND HOPE FOR HIS. RECOVERY. >> Todd: ANY OF THE PASSENGERS. THAT YOU SPOKE TO WHEN THEY GOT. OFF THE PLANE, DID THEY SAY.

EXACTLY WHAT THIS PILOT SAID. OVER THE INTERCOM? BECAUSE LET'S FACE IT WE'VE ALL. BEEN ON PLANES WE ALL HEAR OFTEN. TIMES OR FEEL A LITTLE. TURBULENCE AND WE WOULDN'T THINK. TO STORM THE COCKPIT IN THAT. KIND OF A SITUATION FOR A. STABBING OF ONE PILOT BY THE. OTHER. SO HE OBVIOUSLY SAID SOMETHING. OVER THE INTERCOM TO ASK PEOPLE, BEG PEOPLE, TO GET INTO THE. COCKPIT. DO YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT HE. SAID? DID ANY OF THE PASSENGERS TELL. YOU THAT? >> THE PASSENGERS DIDN'T SPEAK. TO US ABOUT IT.

WE HAD TEAMS ON HAND WHO WERE. THERE TO ALSO DEAL WITH ANY. MENTAL HEALTH RESPONSE THAT WAS. REQUIRED. THERE WERE PSYCHOLOGISTS AT THE. SCENE WHO WERE ABLE TO DEBRIEF, AS WELL AS SECURITY SERVICES WHO. WERE PERFORMING DEBRIEFS OF THE. PASSENGERS ONCE THEY DAME OFF. THE PLANE SO THEY MAY HAVE HAD. THE WHOLE STORY. WE DID MEET VERY BRIEFLY THE. GENTLEMAN WHO HELPED SAVE THE. PILOT AND IT WAS AN INCREDIBLE. THING TO SEE AND OBVIOUSLY, LIKE. I SAID, A LOT OF RELIEF AMONGST.

ALL THE PASSENGERS COMING OFF. THAT FLIGHT. >> Todd: THERE'S SO MANY AMAZING. PARTS OF THIS STORY NOT THE. LEAST OF WHICH YOU HAPPENED TO. HAVE TWO PILOTS IN THE BACK OF. THE PLANE THAT WERE DEAD. HEADING, AND IF THEY'RE NOT. THERE, I KNOW THE ONE GUY CAME. AND LIFTED UP THE CONTROLS TO. TRY TO KEEP THE PLANE FROM NOSE. DIVING BUT, I MEAN, LET'S BE. REALISTIC, HE WAS A PLUMBER, I. DON'T KNOW MANY PLUMBERS THAT. ARE TRAINED IN PILOTING THAT. COULD LAND A PLANE, I DON'T KNOW. MANY PEOPLE NO MATTER THEIR JOB. THAT COULD HAVE LANDED THAT.

PLANE, REMARKABLE ALL AROUND, A. TRAGEDY AVERTED. WE THANK GOD FOR.