Flydubai co-pilot attempts terrorist attack on flight to Israel

A Flydubai co-pilot attempted a terrorist attack by attacking the captain with an axe on a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30, according to reports from Al Jazeera, the BBC, CNBC, and The Guardian. The aircraft was carrying more than 170 people when the incident occurred two and a half hours into the journey, the BBC reported. [1][2][3][4][7]

The BBC and The Guardian reported that the co-pilot on flight FZ1073 used a cockpit crash axe to attack the pilot. The jet plunged 17,000 feet before passengers managed to overpower the attacker and take control of the aircraft, according to the BBC. The Indian government praised captain Smit Machchhar for his immense courage during the incident. [2][4]

Several news outlets, including Al Jazeera, the BBC, and France 24, named the co-pilot as Omani national Hamam al-Hammami. According to The Guardian, the suspect had been barred from flying by Oman because of extremist views. RTE reported that investigators in the United Arab Emirates have not revealed his official motive. [1][2][4][6][7]

Flydubai was established in March 2008 by the Government of Dubai as the emirate's first low-cost carrier. [14]