A Flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv turned into a nightmare in the sky on Wednesday after a violent confrontation broke out in the cockpit and sent the jet plunging toward the earth. One passenger told Fox News that a pilot appeared to stab the other, who then collapsed onto the controls, killing the instrument panel as the plane dropped for several terrifying minutes. Overhead bins burst open, the cabin lost power, and passengers screamed, convinced they were about to die. More than 100 Israeli travelers were reportedly aboard flight FZ1073, and several of them, along with off-duty pilots on the plane, are credited with helping subdue the attacker and steady the aircraft before it made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

Flight-tracking data showed the aircraft losing roughly 17,000 feet of altitude in under two minutes, with its transponder briefly flashing a hijacking code before switching back to a general emergency signal. Both the captain and co-pilot were hospitalized with injuries once the plane landed safely, and Saudi aviation officials confirmed everyone else on board was accounted for and unharmed. Israeli officials say they are treating the episode as a suspected act of terrorism, though accounts differ on exactly who attacked whom in the cockpit. The rare landing of an Israeli-heavy flight on Saudi soil, a country with no formal diplomatic ties to Israel, has only added another layer of intrigue to an already chaotic and fast-moving story.