New Zealand, Australia Investigate Pilot in FlyDubai Attack
Translated & summarized from NEWSru Israel by baba
New Zealand and Australian authorities are investigating co-pilot Hamam Al-Hammami, who attacked a FlyDubai captain on a flight to Tel Aviv. Al-Hammami trained in New Zealand and studied in Australia years ago, with investigators looking into potential radicalization. He reportedly planned the attack before joining FlyDubai and sought flights to Israel. The incident has prompted scrutiny of FlyDubai's rapid post-pandemic hiring practices. The plane was safely landed in Saudi Arabia by a reserve pilot.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- New Zealand and Australia are investigating co-pilot Hamam Al-Hammami's past stays and contacts.
- Al-Hammami attacked captain Smith Machchar with an axe on a FlyDubai flight to Tel Aviv.
- He allegedly planned the attack before joining FlyDubai and sought flights to Israel.
- Investigators are examining if Al-Hammami was radicalized during his studies in New Zealand and Australia.
- The incident raises questions about FlyDubai's pilot vetting amid rapid post-pandemic expansion.
- A reserve pilot landed the aircraft safely in Saudi Arabia after the attack.
New Zealand authorities have launched an investigation into the time co-pilot Hamam Al-Hammami spent in the country during his flight training. Assistant Commissioner of Police Michael Johnson stated that Al-Hammami was in New Zealand on a student visa for 175 days, from November 30, 2018, to May 23, 2019, undergoing part of his training for a British company that is no longer operating there. Police are examining his stay and potential contacts. Australian intelligence agencies are also scrutinizing Al-Hammami's connections to Australia. According to Reuters, he studied at RMIT University in Melbourne approximately ten years ago but did not complete his engineering studies. Australian counter-terrorism units are working to identify his associates and determine if he may have been radicalized during his studies abroad.
Previously, two Israeli sources told Reuters that Al-Hammami stated during interrogation that he conceived the attack before being employed by FlyDubai and was seeking airlines that flew to Tel Aviv. Another source indicated he had intended to hijack and crash the plane on an earlier flight to Israel but abandoned the plan. Authorities in the UAE and FlyDubai have not officially released the co-pilot's name. The Wall Street Journal reported that Al-Hammami was hired by FlyDubai during a period of significant staff expansion following the pandemic, with the airline's personnel nearly doubling since 2021 to around 1500 pilots. Amidst the attack, investigators and aviation industry representatives are examining whether the company's rapid growth may have impacted the quality of pilot selection and vetting.
On September 30, Hamam Al-Hammami attacked captain Smith Machchar with an emergency axe during a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight. Machchar managed to open the cockpit door, after which passengers and crew subdued the attacker. A reserve FlyDubai pilot on board, whose name has not been released, landed the aircraft in Saudi Arabia.
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