Mostly Peaceful Hijacking? NYT Frantically Backpedals After Offensive Headline on Attempted Hijacking Sounds Like Workplace Spat

You can understand media reticence in declaring an incident a terrorist act of hijacking in the chaos that follows any sort of major event of that sort. That being said, you have to hand it to The New York Times: They managed to make what looks like an obvious case of sabotage sound like a workplace spat.

On Wednesday, FlyDubai Flight 1073, en route from Dubai to Tel Aviv, plummeted more than 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds and had to perform an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Reuters reported.

The plane went into a dive after one of the pilots stabbed the other one and took control of the craft. Reuters confirmed that, thanks to the stabbed pilot opening the cockpit door, passengers and crew were able to overpower the pilot-turned-hijacker. Two other FlyDubai pilots on board were able to land the plane safely.

Now, given that the flight is one of the few direct routes from anywhere in the Muslim world to Israel, this would have already raised some eyebrows. That was doubly true after it was discovered that the pilot who allegedly tried to crash the plane was Omani and the pilot who stopped him was Indian. Figure out what religion dominates those two countries and then do the math.

As of early Thursday morning, the motive for the hijacking was unknown, although one can make an educated guess. And yet, The New York Times managed to take the cake by describing it as a kind of workplace incident, saying the plane was “diverted after an altercation between the pilot and co-pilot.”

The NYT trying to frame a likely terrorist plane hijacking as a minor altercation is definitely an interesting choice… pic.twitter.com/GarLeWfsG6

— AG (@AGHamilton29) September 30, 2026

Yeah, workplace incidents like this happen every day. Minor quibbles like whether to crash the airplane or keep it in the air break out all the time in cockpits, and sometimes a knife is brandished. I can’t tell you how often I’ve been delayed because two pilots on a Delta flight are getting in a tizzy over whether to slam the plane into the ground or keep it aloft, and someone has to bring out a blade. Really, HR needs to start cracking down.

And yes, there is the specter of pilot suicide. This is rare, however — certainly a great deal more rare than Islamic terrorism, and it’s merely spitballing by two Israeli defense officials who just happen to be Times sources.

This ended up getting hit with the mother of all community notes, as you might expect:

NY Times just got hit with a BRUTAL community note. pic.twitter.com/iRSyQg9TO4

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 30, 2026

The Times doubled down, saying that “[u]nlike activists and partisans, we don’t publish speculation or unverified information.”

NY Times is now in FULL damage control mode after they were called out for referring to the stabbing of an airplane captain and an attempted hijacking by the co-pilot as an “altercation.”

Their excuse is that they aren’t “activists and partisans.”

Pathetic https://t.co/t2EWjPjDPp pic.twitter.com/AARnXAp4eK

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 30, 2026

Just so we’re clear, yes, your memory serves you correctly: This is absolutely the publication where writer Nicholas Kristof claimed, without evidence, that Israeli soldiers were training dogs to rape Palestinian prisoners. But unlike those perfidious activists and partisans, the Times absolutely, totally, never, ever, ever publishes any speculation or unverified information. Except if it involves rape dogs. Dogs can’t sue, right?

And by the way, the Times’ article regarding the facts of the matter was still pretty suspect as of Thursday morning:

Israeli officials said on Wednesday that much about the traumatic flight remained unclear, including why a pilot would have tried to crash the plane, and whether it was specifically an attack on Israelis, as many people in Israel — including some in the government — quickly concluded.

Three Israeli security officials said that the co-pilot believed to have carried out the attack was an Omani national. The Omani Foreign Ministry declined to immediately comment.

The FlyDubai spokesperson urged all parties “to refrain from premature speculation while authorities gather the facts.” The airline later said it was suspending all flights to and from Israel pending an investigation into the episode.

Yes, why might a pilot from a majority-Muslim country try to crash a flight to Israel? Why might the airline suspend all flights to Israel while everyone is told to “refrain from premature speculation while authorities gather the facts?” Even Sherlock Holmes might not even crack this one open.

It’s unclear why Wednesday’s hijacking occurred, but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out the most likely reason for it, and it certainly isn’t a workplace spat.

The fact that America’s de facto paper of record couldn’t bring itself to admit this and then hid behind its nonexistent journalistic standards isn’t any shock, sadly.

This goes right up there with CNN’s infamous “fiery but mostly peaceful protests” in the newswriting hall of shame.

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