The co-pilot, identified in media reports as Hamam al-Hammami, had previously been barred from flying by Oman over concerns about radical ideological views, the Wall Street Journal reported. ABC News reported that Oman Air suspended him from flying in 2024 after extremist material was found in his possession and restricted him to administrative duties. Investigators are examining how he was subsequently cleared to fly for Flydubai. Israel’s system for sharing passenger and crew data with police, Shin Bet and Mossad was established by a 2023 law.
The UAE attorney general said al-Hammami attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with the cockpit’s emergency crash axe and tried to seize the aircraft in an attempted terrorist attack on Sept. 30. Passengers and crew subdued him, and additional pilots aboard landed the Dubai to Tel Aviv flight safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The suspect was transferred to the UAE, which is leading the investigation, and Israeli investigators are expected to question him, Reuters reported.