The simulator test for the Flydubai terror flight that stunned experts

A simulator experiment on a 737 Max recreated the terrifying moments of the Flydubai flight, testing whether passengers with no aviation background could land the plane after the autopilot disengaged. Former El Al captain Alon Farg determined that a rare combination of four 'miracles' prevented a mass disaster.

A simulator experiment on a Boeing 737 Max recreated the terrifying moments of the Flydubai flight, aiming to assess how close the flight came to crashing. During the simulation, it was demonstrated how pushing the control column disengaged the autopilot and sent the plane into a steep dive toward the ground from 34,000 feet. The experiment also examined what would have happened if no pilots were among the passengers, and whether a person with no aviation background could land the plane. The simulation proved that while a functioning autopilot allows for remote-guided landing, structural damage that could have resulted from the dive angle and high speed makes manual landing nearly impossible. Former El Al captain Alon Farg, who accompanied the experiment, described the chain of events as a rare combination that prevented a mass disaster. Farg pointed to four factors that decided the flight's fate: the captain's recovery and opening the door, a woman who realized something was happening, the Israeli passengers who stood up and fought, and the crew who knew how to fly the plane. Decoding the black box is expected to provide full findings soon.