The harrowing but ultimately hopeful story of the FlyDubai airline hijacking incident last month is being developed as a narrative film by Dori Media Group and India’s Sphereorigin. The Sept. 30 incident is believed to have been a terror plot by the co-pilot of the FlyDubai plane that was bound for Ben-Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv. The flight was primarily full of Israeli citizens traveling home after visiting in Dubai.
The co-pilot is alleged to have stabbed the plane’s captain and taken over the flight controls with the intention of crashing it into Ben-Gurion airport. The flight is reported to have plummeted more than 14,000 feet for about 30 seconds until valiant efforts by the injured pilot, Capt. Smit Machchhar, allowed passengers to overpower the suspected pilot in the cockpit.
The extraordinary circumstances have turned Machchhar into a national hero in his native India as well as in Israel. Dori Media, which produces film and TV out of Tel Aviv, Zurich and Buenos Aires, was approached by representatives for Sphereorigin about working together on a film. The project came together in record time in old-school fashion at the Mipcom content market and conference in Cannes.
Dori Media chief Nadav Palti was surprised and energized to get a phone call from the parties on Oct. 11, on the eve of Mipcom opening. The sides met in the Dori Media booth at the Palais and hammered out the terms of the development pact by the afternoon of Oct. 14. Palti told Variety the speed of the deal coming together indicated the desire by the companies to tell the story of the incident that could have been a devastating tragedy but instead became a triumph that demonstrated the skill and the courage of Machchhar, who is recovering from his injuries.
The co-pilot accused of carrying out the attack is under arrest and facing prosecution by UAE authorities. That allowed passengers to hear the commotion and discover what was happening. Machchhar tried to fight to retain control of the plane and amid that noise, a group of passengers were able to subdue the suspected assailant.
Two other pilots who happened to be traveling on the flight then took over and were able to safely land the plane at the airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The ability to do so marked a gesture of kindness from the Saudi kingdom that does not otherwise allow Israel-affiliated aircraft to land in its borders. The sides are still looking for a writer and director.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
