Yaniv Hayun Brutally Chokes Hijacker To Save 174 Lives

The Plan That Failed

The Omani co-pilot stabbed the captain and tried to destroy the controls. But he met Yaniv Hayun. Hayun returned to Israel Wednesday evening. He stepped off a replacement flight at Ben-Gurion Airport. He still wore a white shirt stained with blood from the fight.

Hayun has an aviation background. He acted fast. The Boeing 737 carried 174 people, including 27 children. In under 30 seconds, a descent exceeding 14,000 feet occurred suddenly. Hayun seized the attacker, applied a chokehold, and dragged him out. This stopped the crash and saved everyone on board.

What Hayun Saw Inside

Hayun forced his way into the cockpit with other passengers. He found the wounded captain on the floor. There were no pilots in the seats. The attacker was between them at the controls. Hayun told Israeli officials exactly what he saw. He stated the man aimed to destroy the instruments to neutralize the aircraft.

Hayun believed the goal was “to crash the plane.” He put the attacker in a chokehold. He dragged him from the cockpit. Then he called other Israeli passengers forward. They helped restrain the man. A reserve pilot from Fiji was rushed into the cockpit. Passengers protected him while he took over. A doctor stabilized the stabbed captain so he survived.

The Moment the Nose Went Down

Another passenger, Yaniv Hion, gave his own account. He described the force pulling him down. “There was this tremendous pressure, this force pulling me downward,” Hion said. He and another man pushed the cockpit door. The stabbed pilot was right against it. It was hard to open. Hion believes the pilot managed to open it before he collapsed.

Once inside, Hion saw the same scene. “When I got inside, I saw the attacker on the controls, between the two seats,” Hion stated. “There were no pilots in the seats.” With one down, the attacker took control of the aircraft. He grabbed the attacker and pulled him out. The whole thing happened in seconds. The plane’s nose was down.

Hion called out to other Israelis on board. “I called out to the other Israelis who were with us on the plane,” Hion said. Then he jumped back in to take the controls. Per the Daily Wire, 166 of the 170 people on board were Israeli citizens.

Singing When They Landed

The plane landed safely. The danger was over. As soon as the wheels touched the ground, the mood changed. The Israelis started singing “Am Yisrael Chai.” This phrase means “The people of Israel live.” Hayun told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu what happened. He explained how the group stopped the hijacker.

Hayun said he called the Israelis who were with them. “I called the Israelis who were with us, jumped back in and pulled the controls,” Hayun said. “I started pulling them back.” The crew and passengers worked together to subdue the attacker. An investigation is now looking into the incident. Reports mention questions about coordination with Iran, but that is still being checked.