Miracles at 34,000 Feet

Oct 2, 2026 by Susan Rosenbluth

By Jonathan Feldstein

The 1947 film Miracle on 34th Street remains one of the top Christmas movies of all time. The film follows Kris Kringle, hired as Macy’s Santa, who insists he is the real Saint Nicholas. A skeptical single mother and her young daughter come to believe in him as a court case tests whether he is truly Santa Claus, restoring faith in kindness and Christmas miracles.

This week, with the averting of a mass calamity from an Islamist terrorist attempting to hijack a plane full of nearly 180 passengers, we are celebrating a series of miracles far more noteworthy, and that can be the theme of many films: Miracles at 34,000 Feet.

Here are just some of the miracles.

The Captain and the Cockpit Door

After being attacked by his jihadi co-pilot, Captain Smit Machchhar had been stabbed critically. Collapsing on the floor, Machchhar used the last moments of his energy to unlock the cockpit door. Without that, passengers could not have entered.

Nina

Sometimes the biggest miracles come in the smallest and least obvious packages.

Nina is a young girl whose quick thinking and courage helped save all the passengers’ lives during the frightening incident aboard a flight from Dubai to Israel. While Captain Machchhar was being attacked, Nina went to the bathroom and heard the captain’s cries for help. Without hesitation, she rushed to wake her mother and urged her to check the cockpit. Nina’s mother immediately ran toward the cockpit and shouted: “He’s getting stabbed!”

The Plumber, Banker, Businessman, and Dentist

Israeli passengers ran into action toward the cockpit instead of freezing. Four Israelis — plumber Yaniv Hayun, dentist Dr. Shota Musaev, businessman Assaf Rajuan, and banker Tzvika Manes — forced their way in while the plane was diving and the terrorist co-pilot was still on top of the captain.

Each, individually and collectively, saved the plane and passengers from an otherwise certain disaster. Thanks to unbelievable courage and quick thinking, ordinary men stepped up in extraordinary circumstances, and a catastrophe was averted.

Innovation and Bravery

The heroic passengers Rajuan and Manes used physical force to restrain the jihadi co-pilot with a headphone or charging cords. They pulled him off the controls, put him in a hold, and tied his hands and legs. Rajuan kept him neutralized for about 50 to 55 minutes until landing.

Late Night TV

Hayun, the plumber, credits his quick thinking to watching the crash series Mayday (Air Crash Investigation). With no pilot license or training, he took control and leveled the dive using what he had learned from Mayday. The plane began to level, and he handed control to one of the real pilots who happened also to be on board. Had he not done it gently, the plane could have fallen apart.

Spare Pilots on Board

Two off-duty pilots were already on the passenger list. After the Israelis’ initial intervention, they took the controls, stabilized the aircraft, and flew the emergency landing at Tabuk. The plane had been so badly damaged by the rapid drop and high speed that only an experienced pilot could have landed it.

The Airframe Held

Tracking data and passenger accounts put the drop at about 17,000 feet in under two minutes — some reports say nearly 14,000 feet in under 30 seconds — close enough to the speed of sound that most of the rudder had torn off. Aviation observers said that at such speed, they were surprised the jet did not break up.

The Doctor on Board

The only doctor aboard was Dr. Shota Musaev, an Israeli dentist. He sprinted forward within seconds, stopped the captain’s bleeding, and stabilized his blood pressure. He said Machchhar was conscious and praying, and that he feared they would lose him. Musaev also helped re-tie the attacker. Had it not been for his quick thinking, Captain Machchhar would have likely bled out.

The Saudis Stepped Up

All reports are that Saudi officials allowed the plane full of Israelis to land, treated the Captain, restrained the jihadi co-pilot, and provided food and a warm welcome to the Israeli passengers. The only other miracle would be if their coordination with Israel and its reported scrambled jet fighters were to have been in the open, or if the Saudis had allowed Israel to send its own plane to rescue and repatriate the passengers. All the same, this week marked the first direct commercial flight between Saudi Arabia and Israel, so perhaps more miracles are in store.

Everyone Walked Away and Got Home Safely

About 174 passengers, including 20 to 30 children, and crew survived. They took off from Dubai in the morning and were home in Israel by the end of the day, averting a disaster.

Rather than dozens of families mourning, this weekend, as Israelis observe Shabbat and celebrate Simchat Torah, dozens of Israelis will thank God in Heaven for the Miracles at 34,000 Feet.

Birkat HaGomel

Birkat HaGomel (בִּרְכַּת הַגּוֹמֵל) is a Jewish blessing of thanksgiving recited in a minyan — a public prayer gathering — after a person has been delivered from danger or experienced a significant rescue. It expresses gratitude to God for protection and safe passage.

“Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, Who bestows kindness upon the undeserving, and Who has bestowed every goodness upon me.”

The blessing does not say that the person who survived deserved to be saved. Instead, it acknowledges that God’s kindness extends even to those who feel unworthy, making the act of gratitude itself an expression of humility.

The congregation responds, as should we all: “May He who has bestowed every goodness upon you continue to bestow every goodness upon you forever.”

Seudat Hodaya

There is a timeless Jewish joke about the theme of our holidays that also seems particularly relevant this week: “They tried to kill us. We won. Let’s eat.”

A seudat hodaya (thanksgiving meal) is a festive meal Jews hold to thank God after being saved from danger, recovering from serious illness, or experiencing a miracle. It is a display of public gratitude and faith, breaking bread together as a sign that life has been restored.

A Timely Celebration

This Shabbat coincides with Simchat Torah, the festival of the completion of the annual reading of the Torah — concluding Deuteronomy (Devarim) and starting over again with Genesis (Bereshit). Three years ago, when Simchat Torah also fell on a Shabbat, Hamas jihadi terrorists perpetrated the greatest massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust. Israelis are still traumatized by the 2023 attack and massacre.

The miracles this week do not diminish the past, but they do show that God still has our back. The converse of this is, as one friend noted, while the jihadi co-pilot shouted “Allahu Akbar” — God is great — in fact, their Allah is not so Akbar.

Not a Fantasy

The 1947 Miracle on 34th Street story is a feel-good fantasy. The Miracles at 34,000 Feet must cause us to be alert to and resolved to combat Islamist jihadi terror in all its forms. Whether you are a plumber, pilot, businessman, banker, dentist, or a little girl, nobody can turn away from this clear and present danger.

Buckle up. This is not a fantasy.