Sonal Machchhar, wife of Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar, said she was “very devastated” when she first learnt about the attack on her husband, admitting that she initially did not have the “mental capacity” to process what had happened.
In an exclusive conversation with CNN-News18, Sonal said the support of friends and family helped her cope as she waited for updates on Smit’s condition. “I was very devastated. And I didn’t have the mental capacity of how should I react,” Sonal said, recalling the moment she first received the news.
She said reassurance from those around her, along with updates from Indian officials, gradually helped ease her fears as she learnt that Smit was stable. “But as I had my friends and family around me, I was reassured
that everything is okay. And very soon, I started getting news that he is stable,” she said.
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Sonal has since met Smit and said seeing him herself had given her further reassurance that he was receiving the necessary medical care. “I met him on Thursday, and that gives me a reassurance that he is in the right hands—very good care, under the good care of UAE doctors, military doctors,” she said.
She said her immediate focus was now on Smit’s recovery and getting him back home. “And I’m just hoping that he comes back home soon, and I’m going to do everything what it takes for his recovery,” Sonal said.
Asked about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reported interest in speaking to Smit, Sonal said she would not be the one to have that conversation with the Israeli leader. “I will not be able to talk to Mr Netanyahu. I think Smit is the right person, he should answer to Mr Netanyahu,” she said.
Sonal added that Smit would speak to Netanyahu once he was in the right frame of mind. “And he will definitely talk to him once he is in the right frame of mind,” she said, before ending the interview to return to her family.
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Smit was injured after an attack inside the cockpit of a Flydubai flight travelling to Tel Aviv. The aircraft was subsequently diverted and made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. Passenger accounts have described a struggle inside the cockpit before the attacker was restrained, while other pilots and crew members helped bring the situation under control.
The Indian pilot has since been recovering under medical supervision, with his family closely following his condition and hoping for his return home.
