Co-pilot accused of trying to hijack Flydubai plane probably acted alone, Israeli sources say
By Tal Shalev, Charlotte Reck, CNN
Tel Aviv (CNN) — The co-pilot accused of attacking his colleague on board the Flydubai flight to Israel and trying to seize the controls probably acted alone, Israeli sources told CNN.
International investigators are still working to determine a motive but an Israeli official said information from the inquiry suggested the suspect acted alone.
Another Israeli source said that, at the moment, Israel does not know of any link to a group or government. Both stressed this was their understanding so far.
The United Arab Emirates and Israel are both investigating the incident. The Interior Ministry of Saudi Arabia, where the plane made an emergency landing, is also conducting investigations.
The attorney general of the UAE, Hamad Saif Al Shamsi, said the co-pilot on board the flight had attempted to seize control of the plane by attacking his colleague with a crash ax – a piece of equipment required on most aircraft. The attorney general called the attempted hijacking a “terrorist act.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News on Thursday that Israel understands the suspect “underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” based on “personal information” collected during the suspect’s ongoing questioning. Netanyahu did not give any further details.
In the immediate aftermath of the attack, US President Donald Trump said that the suspect could be linked to Iran “based on what I’m hearing.” But he gave no other details.
Flydubai flight FZ1073 narrowly avoided disaster on its journey from Dubai, plummeting thousands of feet in a matter of minutes amid the attack on the plane’s captain.
Despite being wounded, pilot Captain Smit Machchhar managed to unlock the cockpit door and signal his distress to passengers and crew, who bravely rushed into the cockpit to regain control of the aircraft.
Sources told CNN the suspect, named as Hamam al-Hammami, is an Omani national who had been removed from a previous job at Oman’s national airline last year following concerns about his extremist views.
A LinkedIn profile bearing the name Hamam al-Hammami said he worked at Oman Air for seven years, leaving in February 2025, before joining the Moroccan airline Royal Air Maroc in June 2025 and departing in January 2026. One source told CNN that the profile belongs to the Flydubai pilot in Wednesday’s incident. The profile has since been deleted and CNN has reached out to LinkedIn for comment.
A post made to the LinkedIn profile on Wednesday, about nine hours after the incident, included a photo of the former leader of al Qaeda. It is unclear who published the posts or whether they were scheduled in advance.
An Israeli official told CNN that al-Hammami had worked for Flydubai for only eight months.
Another source said the alleged assailant had previously worked for Royal Air Maroc. In a statement to the Associated Press, Air Maroc said the suspect trained with the airline for three months in 2025 as part of the pre-employment process but he was not selected.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) also told CNN that it is investigating al-Hammami’s links to the country, and said an update will be provided when appropriate.
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CNN’s Abbas Al Lawati, Kylie Atwood, Isaac Yee, Avery Schmitz, Thomas Bordeaux and Teele Rebane contributed to this report.
