A flight between Dubai and Tel Aviv dropped 17,000 feet, then sent a hijack warning. Here's what we know.

A FlyDubai Boeing 737 Max 8. GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images A flyDubai jet flying between Dubai and Tel Aviv was forced to divert mid-flight. The plane dropped by around 17,000 feet in just over two minutes, flight-tracking data shows. Exactly what happened is unclear, though the plane sent a distress signal indicating a hijack attempt. A flight to Tel Aviv was forced to divert on Wednesday morning after suddenly dropping 17,000 feet. FlyDubai Flight 1073 took off from Dubai just after 7 a.m. local time and was scheduled to land at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport about three hours later. Around two hours into the flight, the Boeing 737 Max dropped sharply from its cruising altitude of 34,000 feet, descending to roughly 17,000 feet above sea level. 10 minutes later, the airplane squawked 7700, an internationally recognized code for general emergencies during flights. It then changed the code to 7500, which indicates "unlawful interference" with the flight, and is the code used by pilots to alert authorities of attempted hijackings. It later reverted to the more general 7700 code after diverting toward Tabuk, a city in northern Saudi Arabia, about 270 miles from Tel Aviv. The plane landed in Tabuk at 9:44 a.m. local time, according to flight-tracking data. Cluster2, which operates Tabuk's airport, said in a statement that both pilots on the flight were injured, but did not provide information on the nature of their injuries. "The flight landed safely at 9:45 a.m., where it was found the captain and first officer sustained injuries, and were immediately transferred to hospital to receive the necessary medical care," the statement said. The exact nature of the incident remains unclear, though Israeli media reports suggest one of the flight's pilots may have attempted to crash the plane. There is no indication that there was any fault with the plane itself. Yasmin Abukasis, who said her daughter was on the flight, spoke to reporters at Ben Gurion Airport and told the BBC her daughter described passengers subduing someone on the jet. She added that it was a "crazy, crazy time. It's very hard to explain what's happened, but it was a big stress." FlyDubai operates several daily flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv. Jack GUEZ / AFP via Getty Images Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's national security minister, said in a post on X that there was "a terrorist who planned to crash the plane and murder the 180 Israelis on board." "Following concerns over an aviation incident, Prime Minister Netanyahu held consultations on the matter and is monitoring developments," the Israeli prime minister's office said in a statement. "The incident is under control, and all measures are currently being deployed in order to return the Israeli passengers safely to Israel." Read the original article on Business Insider