“I was trying to save my own life, but I knew I could not let all those people die.” Those words, spoken by Capt. Smit Machchhar from his hospital bed to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, may best explain what happened aboard Flydubai Flight 1073.

On Sept. 30, Machchhar was flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv when his co-pilot attacked him and sent the aircraft into a plunge. Badly wounded and lying on the cockpit floor, Machchhar sensed that the plane was going down. He later described telling himself he had “one last push” left. He reached the cockpit door and opened it. Passengers and crew rushed in and subdued the attacker, while two Flydubai pilots traveling as passengers helped land the aircraft safely in Saudi Arabia.