2nd Flydubai flight heads to Israel after reported turnaround

A second Flydubai flight traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv was earlier reported to have turned back but is now making its way to Israel and is expected to land at 2.40 pm local time (1140GMT), according to Israeli media.

Ynet said there was no longer concern over an additional incident involving Flydubai flight FZ1081.

There was no indication that the incident involving FZ1081 was connected to an earlier Flydubai flight, FZ1073, which triggered a hijacking alert before making an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia, according to the report.

Meanwhile, Israeli Transportation Minister Miri Regev urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to immediately ground Flydubai flights pending completion of an investigation into the incident involving FZ1073, The Jerusalem Post reported.

Regev also requested that flights operated by Israeli airlines, including El Al, Israir and Arkia, be given priority, citing their Israeli security checks, according to the report.

Earlier Wednesday, FZ1073, traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv, issued a distress call and landed safely at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, according to Anadolu.

The airport said both the captain and first officer were injured and transferred to a hospital for treatment.

Ynet reported conflicting accounts about the circumstances of the incident.

Israeli Channel 12 said it appeared not to be security-related and that authorities were examining whether the distress signal had been activated accidentally following an argument between the pilots.