Flydubai terrorist named as Hamam al-Hammami; was banned from flying by Oman for suspected extremism

The flydubai copilot who attempted to crash a plane full of Israelis earlier this week was previously banned from flying by Oman’s national airline over concerns that he had been radicalized, multiple sources said on Friday and Saturday. Despite this, the Omani copilot was subsequently hired by flydubai, and flew the Dubai to Tel Aviv route.

US media outlets on Friday named him as Hamam al-Hammami, 29. On Wednesday, he stabbed the pilot and, according to witnesses, tried to crash the plane in an attempted terror attack. He is now under investigation in the United Arab Emirates.

It was unclear whether Muscat shared its concerns about al-Hammami with other countries or airlines. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he “underwent Islamist radical indoctrination,” without elaborating.

US television networks CNN and ABC reported that Oman Air removed al-Hammami from training over concerns about his extremist views, with AP reporting that he was shifted to an administrative position. The ABC report, which cited senior intelligence and law enforcement officials, said he was found to be in possession of extremist material in 2024.

A Gulf diplomat told AP he had undergone standard security checks before being hired by flydubai, but that these checks focused on whether he had been convicted on criminal charges.

According to ABC, al-Hammami is “cooperating” with investigators and has suggested to them that he intended to crash the plane in Israel. Quoting sources briefed on the investigation, ABC reported: “Al-Hammami… has indicated that his intent was to crash the aircraft in Israel.”

CNN reported that al-Hammani was born to an Omani father and Syrian mother in the United Arab Emirates, where he had lived for several years.

It said a since-deleted LinkedIn page with the name Hamam al-Hammami showed he worked at Oman Air for a seven-year period ending in February 2025, before starting at Morocco’s Royal Air Maroc in June 2025 and departing in January 2026. The network said the profile did not mention flydubai but said a source familiar with the matter confirmed it was his account, which also showed he studied at Buckinghamshire New University in England.

The report quoted a source at the university telling CNN that he studied remotely at the school for three years, graduating in 2023 with a degree in aviation management.

CNN said that al-Hammami’s X and Instagram accounts were also deleted, with the latter having shared two videos after the attack.

The first featured a series of clips that included footage of Israeli planes that were filmed from other cockpits, before ending with photos of former al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and Jordanian triple agent Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, who in 2009 carried out a deadly suicide bombing targeting a CIA base in Afghanistan on behalf of the jihadist group.

In one clip, which CNN said it geolocated to Dubai International Airport, the person filming zoomed in on an El Al plane. The cockpit screen showed the flight number – OMA624 – and date, October 11, 2023, CNN reported, adding that the flight number corresponded to an Oman Air flight that typically travels from Dubai to Muscat, and that the date was from the period when al-Hammami worked at Oman Air. More clips showing El Al planes and one from Israeli airline Arkia also appeared in the video.

The second post reportedly included an AI image of Islam’s three holiest cities of Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem, while a defiant poem was recited in the background.

CNN said both posts were also shared on al-Hammami’s LinkedIn before it was deleted. “Both were published in quick succession on Wednesday, about nine hours after the incident,” CNN reported. “It is unclear who published the posts or whether they were scheduled in advance.”

A flydubai spokesperson in an email to The Associated Press said the airline could not comment beyond its official statements and acknowledged “there are many questions at this stage.” There was no immediate comment from Oman Air, and Oman’s government has said nothing publicly in response to repeated questions since the incident.

The Boeing 737 flight was carrying 174 passengers, almost all of them Israelis, when the copilot stabbed the pilot in an apparent attempt to crash the plane, which plunged nearly 14,000 feet (4,267 meters) in less than 30 seconds.

Captain Smit Machchhar, covered in blood, managed to open the cockpit door, allowing Israeli passengers to charge inside to overpower the copilot and tie him up and stabilize the plane, while other pilots who were on board brought the plane to an emergency landing in Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia.

Israeli passengers were flown home on a special repatriation flight from Saudi Arabia — which has no diplomatic ties with Israel — while Machchhar and the attacking copilot were returned to the UAE, Machchhar for medical treatment and the attacker for interrogation.

Flydubai said earlier in the day that a full official investigation was underway into the incident.

“It is important that we allow this process to establish the facts,” Chief Executive Officer Ghaith Al Ghaith said in a statement.

First repatriation flight touches down in Israel

Also Friday, officials from the Emirati airline told Channel 12 News they want to resume services to Israel, but Israeli officials have forced it to cancel flights until further notice.

The officials asserted that flydubai was ready to return to Israel on Saturday.

The report did not provide a response from officials in Jerusalem.

The UAE canceled all flights to Israel following the attack, complicating travel for hundreds of passengers who fly between the countries on a typical day. As a result, Israeli airlines launched repatriation flights, the first of which landed in Tel Aviv just after 1 a.m.

The airport listed carriers Arkia and Israir with flights scheduled to arrive from Dubai early Saturday. El Al was expected to fly passengers from Dubai to Israel on Sunday.

Dubai has been a popular destination for Israelis since Israel and the UAE established ties in 2020 as part of the Trump administration’s Abraham Accords to normalize ties between Israel and Arab countries.