'What if I don't get up?': the Flydubai captain speaks for himself on ITV News
Captain Smit Machchhar told India's prime minister about the attack in a video call, on a Friday when diesel passed £2 a litre and Manchester City lodged its appeal.
ITV NewsStory of Why this story? The channel's weekly summary: what went up this week, what is drawing views now, and where the channel stands among similar channels.
Flydubai pilot stabbed whilst mid-air speaks out on terrifying incident
Two days ago the voice on ITV News was a friend calling him a hero. On Friday it was Captain Smit Machchhar himself. Recovering in an Abu Dhabi hospital after being stabbed in the cockpit of a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight, he spoke publicly for the first time, in a video call with Narendra Modi, about falling, getting back up and thinking of the passengers. That short report is the channel's fastest-moving video right now.
It shared a crowded Friday. Manchester City lodged its appeal against the financial rules verdict just before the deadline, and the Football Association's warning about the integrity of the game drew the most views of the day's uploads, with a comment section busy debating titles, tax inspectors and how long the case has taken. Diesel crossed £2 a litre for the first time, and an explainer asked whether the G7's release of 100 million barrels from emergency reserves will bring it back down. The News at Ten led on a man charged with preparing terror acts against Nigel Farage.
All of it kept the channel far above its usual pace: nearly twice its typical daily views, and about 9.5 million across the week, while the subscriber count held still. Among news broadcasters of its size, only 7NEWS Australia and GB News gained more views this week, both having big ones, while NowThis stayed quiet.
Published on Trari
Read next
Is this your channel?
Share the story with your audience: in a community post, in your channel's description or on your socials. The text and the badge are ready.
You may use the picture, the badge, and link it to this story.
The videos drawing views on ITV News right now
Man City: FA warns of implications for 'integrity of football'33,920 views · 2026-10-02
Will releasing emergency oil reserves bring diesel prices down?17,240 views · 2026-10-02
Pressure piles on British motorists as diesel leaps to record high - …10,867 views · 2026-10-02
What do we know about the 'security scare' at Harry and Meghan's chil…10,480 views · 2026-10-02
Man charged with planning acts of terror against Nigel Farage - Watch…10,463 views · 2026-10-02
- Channel
- ITV News
- Subscribers
- 2,250,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 9,541,380
- Videos published this week
- 15
- Video published
- October 2, 2026
- Video views so far
- 32,621
The numbers
Here is how ITV News' week looks in figures.
