The FlyDubai co-pilot who is accused of attacking his pilot with an ax and attempting to take over their Israel-bound commercial flight last week planned to crash the aircraft into the passenger terminal at Ben-Gurion International Airport, the United Arab Emirates says. Source link
The co-pilot who attacked the captain of a FlyDubai jet last week had planned to crash the plane into Tel Aviv’s international airport, the United Arab Emirates’ top prosecutor said on Friday. In the aftermath of the incident, people on board – the majority of whom were Israeli – described a sudden plunge in altitude and a fight for control of the aircraft, which was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. The passengers were repatriated on a second flydubai flight hours later. The unnamed Omani co-pilot, now in custody in the UAE, had drawn inspiration from al Qaeda’s September 11, 2001 suicide attacks on the United States, and carried out his attempt “with the aim of causing the greatest possible loss of life”, according to the Emirati prosecutor’s findings published by state media. The prosecutor found that the co-pilot had first begun to be radicalised while studying in Australia “through reading extremist literature and following online content glorifying terrorist organisations and suicide attacks”. He said last week’s flight had been the co-pilot’s …
Capt. Smit Machchhar was brutally attacked with an axe (Image: AP/Israel’s Foreign Ministry) A close friend of the pilot who was attacked with an axe as he flew 182 people to Tel Aviv has described being ‘broken’ and in ‘disbelief’ when he heard the news about the stabbing on board. A FlyDubai co-pilot, Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, is alleged to have attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with an axe before attempting to seize control of the plane. The flight, carrying 182 people, was nearly crashed before passengers and others intervened. Captain Machchhar described how he received blows to the back of his head, “one after the other”. The captain, who was badly injured, has said he used his remaining energy while being stabbed to unlock the cockpit door, allowing people who had noticed alarmingly unusual sounds to come in, tackle the co-pilot and stabilise the plane. Two passengers reportedly helped take control of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft and land it. Passenger Almog Itali said one of them was a British pilot and that they “entered …
Flydubai co-pilot attacked captain with a crash axe. (Image: Israel’s Foreign Ministry/AFP via Getty Images) A Flydubai co-pilot attacked the captain with a crash axe as the plane was flying to Israel, with passengers then rushing into the cockpit to stop him, UAE authorities have said. Flight FZ1073, carrying more than 170 people, was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when it suddenly plunged 17,000ft around two and a half hours into its journey. The United Arab Emirates prosecutor general said the co-pilot had attempted to carry out a “terrorist act” and assaulted the captain with the axe in an effort to take control of the aircraft. The investigation remains ongoing, with authorities looking into the circumstances, motive and any possible links surrounding the incident. Captain Smit Machchhar was injured in the attack. (Image: NARENDRA MODI YOUTUBE CHANNEL/AFP via Getty Images) The captain, Indian national Smit Machchhar, was injured during the attack but managed to open the cockpit door while lying on the floor. He later recalled: “I told myself to go for one last …
Al-Qaeda has called for the targeting of Israeli and US nationals flying on planes, as the group praises the September 30 attempted attack on a FlyDubai flight. Copilot Hamam al-Hammami, 29, who attempted to crash a plane full of Israelis earlier this week, is now under investigation in the United Arab Emirates. The pilot was removed from a previous job at Oman’s national airline last year following concerns about his extremist views, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Reuters reported that the UAE prosecutor general had formally described the September 30 Flydubai incident as an attempted terrorist attack. The copilot allegedly attacked the captain with a cockpit crash axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft. More than 170 people were aboard, most of them Israeli nationals. The Times of Israel reported that Israeli investigators believed the co-pilot had undergone indoctrination into “al-Qaeda’s ideology”. The report said investigators were examining whether he acted alone and were looking for possible copycats. An online newsletter linked to al-Qaeda now appears to have praised the …
State news agency WAM quoted UAE Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi as saying the Flydubai Omani co-pilot accused of attacking the captain with a crash axe tried to seize control of the passenger jet bound for Israel and attempted to carry out a “terrorist attack.” Planning, attempted terrorist act behind flydubai flight FZ1073 incident: Attorney-General#WamNews https://t.co/OWxoZ9nWWR pic.twitter.com/JCE3NuGppa — WAM English (@WAMNEWS_ENG) October 3, 2026 “Investigations into the incident involving flydubai flight FZ1073 found that the co-pilot had attempted to carry out a terrorist attack,” Al Shamsi said. BREAKING: The Omani co-pilot who stabbed Captain Smit Machchhar and tried to crash Flydubai Flight FZ1073 on its way to Tel Aviv has been identified as Hamam Al Hamami. Netanyahu stated today that it’s becoming increasingly clear after the first interrogations that the attacker… pic.twitter.com/qXBS64D7W8 — Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 3, 2026 The aircraft operating flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday, about one week before the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks, plunged 18,000 feet during the attack as passengers and crew subdued …
TEL AVIV — A Flydubai pilot attacked his flight captain using a crash ax and tried to take control of the aircraft’s controls in an attempted terrorist attack, an official with the United Arab Emirates said Saturday. The suspect is Omani citizen Hamam al-Hammami, multiple sources from three agencies briefed on the investigation and a diplomat in the Middle East told NBC News. Authorities have not officially released the identity. The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that al-Hammami had “previously been banned from flying by Oman over concerns he had adopted radical ideological views.” Oman Air did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether he previously worked for the company. Emirati officials are leading investigations into the midair incident, which occurred Wednesday on a flight carrying 174 mostly Israeli passengers from Dubai to Tel Aviv. A crash was averted, according to eyewitnesses and Israeli officials, when crew and passengers were able to enter the cabin and subdue the attacker. “Investigations into the incident aboard Flydubai flight FZ1073 …
A Flydubai co-pilot accused of attacking the captain of a flight bound for Israel has been identified as an Omani national previously barred from flying in his home country over concerns about alleged extremist views, according to media reports. There has been no official confirmation of the pilot’s identity or his beliefs. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list The United Arab Emirates on Saturday described Wednesday’s incident on board Flight FZ1073 as an attempted “terrorist operation”, saying the co-pilot attacked Captain Smit Machchhar, an Indian national, with an emergency axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft. But investigators are still working to establish the motive and whether anyone else was connected to the attack, which has raised concerns about pilot vetting and aviation security. Here is what we know: What do we know about the accused pilot? The co-pilot suspected of attacking the captain of the Dubai-Tel Aviv flight carrying 174 people has been identified as Hamam al-Hammami, an Omani national, three people with knowledge of the situation, including a Gulf …
The co-pilot who tried to hijack a flight bound for Israel on Wednesday used a crash ax to attack the captain in the cockpit, UAE officials said. The co-pilot attempted to “take control of the aircraft” and carry out a “terrorist act,” UAE Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said in a statement Saturday, published on the official Emirates News Agency. Source link
The co-pilot of Flydubai flight FZ1073 attempted to carry out a “terrorist” attack during the flight, the United Arab Emirates prosecutor general said on Saturday, according to the state news agency WAM. The co-pilot was identified as Hammam al-Hammami, an Omani national, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. UAE authorities did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation of his identity. The co-pilot attacked the pilot inside the cockpit with a crash axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft, the prosecutor general said. A crash axe is typically kept in the cockpit for use during emergencies such as crashes. Investigations are ongoing to determine the circumstances of the incident, the motives and any related connections, as well as to examine physical and digital evidence, he added. UAE Prosecutor General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi’s comments were the first by Emirati authorities to describe the incident as an attempted “terrorist” attack. Read moreNetanyahu warns of ‘very heavy price’ if any country found to be behind FlyDubai incident During the Flydubai flight, …
