Ten days after the attempted hijacking and crash of a flydubai passenger aircraft, details have emerged about an IDF directive known as "World Trade," which governs the military's response to suspected hijackings of civilian aircraft.
Under the directive, Israeli fighter jets can be scrambled to confront hijackers or terrorists and prevent an aviation incident from escalating into a wider catastrophe, including attacks on strategic installations or additional casualties beyond those aboard the aircraft. In an extreme scenario, the procedure allows fighter jets to shoot down the passenger plane. Alternatively, they can escort it to a secure landing at an airport.
(Photo: IDF)
The decision to shoot down a civilian aircraft would be exceptionally rare and could be made only following consultations with senior defense officials acting under the direction of Israel's political leadership.
Such a measure is intended to prevent an even greater disaster, including mass casualties on the ground in addition to those aboard the aircraft, or an attack on strategic infrastructure that could cause severe damage to national security.
During the initial moments of the flydubai incident, the circumstances remained unclear, and the IDF prepared for the possibility that the aircraft was being hijacked.
Shortly after the military received an alert about the situation aboard the plane, two Israeli Air Force fighter jets were scrambled to escort it while officials assessed the developing incident and considered their response.
The scramble was carried out under procedures the IDF regularly practices for scenarios involving civilian aircraft approaching Israel that deviate from their designated flight paths, fail to respond to radio communications, transmit distress signals or become the target of a hijacking attempt.
When necessary, fighter jets are dispatched to identify and escort the aircraft, while authorities simultaneously consider whether to close Israeli airspace. The Israeli Air Force maintains continuous readiness to respond to a wide range of aerial threats and prevent unauthorized incursions into the country's airspace. Its units operate around the clock, monitoring the skies, identifying irregularities and detecting potential threats while maintaining the ability to scramble aircraft at short notice.
This readiness relies on a continuously updated aerial picture, forces on standby and regular exercises simulating different emergencies. The objective is to identify unusual incidents as early as possible, make rapid decisions and respond according to how the situation develops.
One of the scenarios regularly rehearsed by the Air Force involves civilian aircraft approaching Israel.
Under the dedicated directive, the military can respond to situations in which an unusual incident may develop into an airborne terrorist attack, including a hijacking or an attempt to deliberately crash an aircraft with its passengers aboard.
The procedure can be activated under a variety of circumstances, including an aircraft deviating from its planned route, failing to respond to radio calls, transmitting a distress signal, experiencing a technical malfunction or facing a medical emergency requiring an urgent landing.
Once activated, measures are taken to protect Israeli airspace. In some cases, these may include closing the country's airspace entirely to prevent a potentially more serious incident.
The Air Force regularly rehearses its response, focusing on reducing reaction times and ensuring it can move quickly from detecting an irregularity to understanding the situation and implementing the appropriate measures.
The IDF emphasizes that activating the directive does not necessarily indicate a suspected security incident. In some cases, the procedure may be triggered by a technical malfunction, communications failure, deviation from the planned flight path or human error by the aircraft's crew. Each unusual incident is investigated and handled until the concern has been resolved and authorities have established a clear picture of what happened.
First published: 11:48, 10.10.26