Flydubai Faces Crisis After Co-Pilot's Sabotage Attempt
Translated & summarized from Behadrei Haredim by baba
Flydubai is facing a major crisis after co-pilot Hammam Al-Hamami attempted to crash a plane bound for Ben Gurion Airport by attacking the captain with an axe. Aviation experts believe the airline's rapid growth, which saw its workforce nearly double since 2021, may have contributed to the incident. The airline has significantly expanded its operations, particularly its flights to and from Israel, even after October 7, 2023. Flydubai is cooperating with investigators, stating that safety is its highest priority.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Flydubai co-pilot Hammam Al-Hamami attempted to crash a plane en route to Ben Gurion Airport.
- The airline's rapid expansion, nearly doubling staff since 2021, is cited as a potential factor in the incident.
- Flydubai has become a key air link to Israel, increasing flights even after the October 7 attacks.
- Al-Hamami was hired in February after failing to find employment with airlines in Oman and Morocco.
- The airline reported a profit of $531 million in 2025 but has a history of serious safety incidents.
- Flydubai stated that passenger and crew safety remains its top priority and is cooperating with investigators.
Flydubai is confronting its most significant challenge to date as it works to restore passenger confidence following a co-pilot's deliberate attempt to crash a Boeing aircraft en route to Ben Gurion Airport. The co-pilot, 29-year-old Hammam Al-Hamami from Oman, reportedly attacked the captain with an axe in a failed bid to bring down the plane. Aviation authorities and industry insiders suggest that the airline's rapid expansion may have contributed to the incident. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Flydubai has nearly doubled its workforce, growing from 3,682 employees at the end of 2021 to 6,763 by the close of 2025. The airline currently employs approximately 1,500 pilots, a substantial increase from 658 a decade ago. To meet its growth targets, the company lowered the required flight hours for junior pilots this year and offered attractive salary packages exceeding $18,000 per month for captains. Al-Hamami himself was hired only in February, after failing to secure positions with airlines in Oman and Morocco, according to The Wall Street Journal. The incident occurred on one of the airline's crucial routes, which has since been suspended. Flydubai has become a vital air bridge to Israel since 2020, maintaining operations and even increasing flights to up to 10 daily after October 7, 2023, when other carriers canceled their services. In 2025, the airline transported over 800,000 passengers through Ben Gurion Airport, a 71% rise from 2024. Overall, 1.5 million passengers traveled from Israel to the UAE last year, making it the third-largest destination from Israel. Yoav Gorenzsky, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), noted Flydubai's continuous operation as commendable. The airline, established in 2008 with government backing, also operates flights to high-risk destinations avoided by Western companies, such as Kabul and Damascus. Despite high profitability, with earnings of $531 million in 2025, the company has a history of serious incidents, including a 2015 plane damage by sniper fire in Baghdad and a 2016 crash in Russia due to pilot error that killed 62 people. A Flydubai spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal that the company is cooperating with investigators and emphasized that passenger and crew safety remains its top priority.
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