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Flydubai Co-Pilot Planned 9/11-Style Tel Aviv Attack
A flydubai co-pilot allegedly plotted to crash a Tel Aviv-bound flight, attacking the captain and forcing an emergency landing, Simple Flying reports.
The flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv seemed routine. But one of the pilots had other plans.
Simple Flying reports that flydubai co-pilot Haman al-Hammami, a 29-year-old Omani national born in the UAE, allegedly planned a 9/11-style attack on Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport. He used his job at the Dubai-based airline to gather intelligence, according to the report, citing a local news agency.
The attack unfolded on Flight 1073, a Boeing 737 MAX 8 carrying 174 passengers and six crew. Roughly two hours into the three-hour-45-minute flight, al-Hammami allegedly attacked the captain with a crash axe. The plane dove 18,000 feet. Passengers feared for their lives.
Captain Smit Machchhar wrestled al-Hammami and unlocked the cockpit door. Passengers and crew rushed to help and restrained the co-pilot. An off-duty pilot aboard took control and landed the plane in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
The aircraft transmitted an unlawful interference signal (7500). Israeli military scrambled aircraft. The transponder later switched to emergency code 7700.
Passenger Asaf Rajuan told the New York Times, quoted by Simple Flying: “We didn’t know if the pilot was with us or not, we didn’t know who was against whom. We even started suspecting the flight attendants. Underneath us was only desert. We were afraid we were being taken to a hostile country.”
al-Hammami had been suspended as a trainee co-pilot for Oman Air two years ago. Investigators found extremist materials and disturbing images on his social media, Simple Flying reports. The UAE attorney-general labeled the attempted hijacking a terrorist act. Both Israel and the UAE have launched investigations.
Captain Machchhar remains in hospital, recovering. The Indian embassy confirmed he is in good health and hailed his courage.
This isn’t a movie script. It’s a reminder that the people flying your plane are supposed to be screened. This one slipped through. And passengers paid the price in terror.
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