PTSD at Baggage Claim: FlyDubai Passengers Escape Death but Trauma Will Follow them Home
The passengers aboard FlyDubai Flight FZ1073 may have landed safely, but for many—especially the children—the terror didn’t end when the wheels touched the ground. One child was reportedly just 3 years old; the same age David Rubin’s son was 25 years ago, when Rubin and his young boy barely escaped an Islamic terrorist attack that left both physically wounded and psychologically traumatized. That is the basis for the foundation Rubin started, the Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund, which seeks to rehabilitate children from that kind of trauma.
CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE SHILOH ISRAEL CHILDREN’S FUND AND LEARN MORE
- Children carry invisible psychological wounds long after surviving terrorism
- Co-pilot sent into radicalized, jihadist rage, sought to murder passengers for Allah
- Rubin’s son was three when terrorists shot him in the head
- Rubin was wounded while desperately protecting his young son
- FlyDubai’s youngest survivors will face the greatest psychological trauma despite landing safely
- Rubin’s foundation specializes in helping children recover from terrorism
Rubin, the mayor of Shiloh, Israel at the time, was driving home with his 3-year-old son in 2001 when Islamic terrorists opened fire on their stalled vehicle. Rubin was shot in the leg. A bullet struck his son in the head, missing his brain stem by just one millimeter. They survived, but the physical wounds were only part of the ordeal. Rubin discovered that his son also needed psychological treatment to process what he had experienced. That realization ultimately led Rubin to establish the Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund, dedicated to helping children heal from the trauma of terrorism.
Terror, Trauma, and PTSD
That makes Rubin uniquely qualified to explain what may happen next to the youngest FlyDubai passengers.
Reuters reports that the co-pilot attacked the captain during the flight, sending the aircraft into a plunge of more than 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds. Passengers rushed toward the cockpit and helped subdue the attacker, allowing the aircraft to land safely in Saudi Arabia. More than 170 people were aboard.
But surviving a terrorist attack is not the same as escaping its consequences.
Rubin can explain why a child who experiences something this terrifying can continue reliving it long after the immediate danger has passed—and why parents should recognize the signs of trauma rather than assume their child is simply “over it.”
He can also discuss what his own son’s experience taught him about childhood trauma, how specialized therapy can help children regain a sense of safety, and why the psychological wounds inflicted by terrorism can be every bit as real as the physical ones.
Rubin is available for interviews to discuss the invisible aftermath of the FlyDubai attack—and what it takes to help traumatized children heal.
Relevant Article(s):
Israel’s Netanyahu: Co-pilot of flydubai plane underwent radical Islamist indoctrination | Reuters
Hero plumber who stopped co-pilot from crashing flydubai plane has special message for Trump
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- What happens psychologically to a 3-year-old who experiences terror at 35,000 feet?
- How can parents recognize trauma in children who survived a terrifying attack?
- Why can surviving the danger be only the beginning of a child’s trauma?
- What did your 3-year-old son experience after terrorists shot your vehicle?
- How did that experience shape your decision to help traumatized children?
- Can children develop PTSD even when an attack ends without physical injury?
- What should parents do immediately after a child experiences terrorism?
- What does healing from terrorism look like for a young child?
ABOUT DAVID RUBIN…
David Rubin, former Mayor of Shiloh Israel, is the author of seven books, including his latest, Confronting Radicals: What America Can Learn from Israel, which has recently been made into a movie. Rubin is the founder and president of Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund, established after he and his then three-year-old son were wounded in a terror attack.
Websites:
www.IsraelChildren.org (treating the victims of terror)
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