The TOI correspondent from Washington: In a rare gesture of congressional recognition for an Indian national, a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers has introduced a resolution honoring Captain Smit Machchhar, the Indian pilot who helped prevent a suicidal terrorist attack aboard a Flydubai flight bound for Israel last week.The resolution, introduced Monday by New Jersey Democrat Josh Gottheimer, with Republican Reps Michael McCaul of Texas and Don Bacon of Nebraska as cosponsors, praises Machchhar for what it calls “extraordinary courage in protecting every soul aboard his aircraft.”The honor comes even as relations between Washington and New Delhi have entered one of their more difficult periods in the Trump era, with disagreements over tariffs, India’s purchase of Russian oil and wider geopolitical differences complicating what had been a steadily deepening strategic partnership. U.S.-India trade negotiations have again stalled, with Washington retaining the possibility of significantly higher tariffs on Indian goods, and there has been a sharp uptick in anti-Indian xenophobia on social media platforms in the U.S.Machchhar’s heroism, meanwhile, has provided a point of uncomplicated convergence among India, the U.S and Israel. According to the congressional resolution, the House should “commend the heroic actions of the off-duty pilots, cabin crew, and passengers who secured the flight deck and brought the aircraft safely down” and condemn the attack as “an act of terrorism and as an attack on the safety of international civil aviation.” It also calls for a full investigation by Saudi Arabia and the UAE.For Gottheimer, the resolution fits neatly into a congressional career built around national security, Israel and bipartisan cooperation. A fifth-term Democrat, he is the ranking member of the National Security Agency and Cyber Subcommittee on the House Intelligence Committee. He is also a member of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans who worked as a speechwriter in the Clinton White House before moving through the private sector and eventually to Congress.Machchhar’s heroism is also an unlikely but powerful bridge at a moment when the broader India-U.S. relationship is being tested by the transactional politics of the MAGA era. While governments argue over tariffs and Russian oil, the U.S Congress is sending a different message: whatever the disputes between Washington and New Delhi, an Indian professional who risked his life to save Americans, Israelis and other passengers can still command bipartisan American admiration.
