Breaking
An Omani national named Hamam al Hammami, serving as co-pilot on a FlyDubai flight, attacked the captain with the cockpit’s crash axe in an apparent attempt to crash the aircraft. The incident occurred on 10 November during a flight to Israel.
According to reports from Ynet, Times of Israel, and Jerusalem Post, al Hammami had previously been removed from two airlines due to extremism concerns. He had studied at a British university and was radicalised while in Syria, raising serious questions about security screening failures.
The aircraft reached near-supersonic speeds and experienced extreme airframe stress during the incident. Aeronautical experts suggest the damaged aircraft may never be airworthy again. A passenger assisted in subduing the attacker, allowing the remaining crew to regain control and land safely.
Investigation into the incident has revealed significant intelligence gaps—al Hammami’s removal from other airlines for extremism was not detected during security checks, and he was cleared to operate on flights to Israel despite prior warning signs.
Sources: Ynet, www.israelhayom.co.il, Times of Israel, Jerusalem Post
Update 23:01: Initial report of attempted aircraft sabotage from 11 October
Update 01:01: Developing story with co-pilot identification and aircraft damage assessment
Update 03:15: FlyDubai co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami attempted to crash the aircraft by attacking the captain. The airline hired him without background checks despite Omani government warnings about his extremist website visits.
