An Omani co-pilot employed by flydubai allegedly attempted to hijack a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30, intending to crash the aircraft into a target in Israel. The co-pilot, identified as Hamam al-Hammami, reportedly attacked the plane’s captain, Smit Machchhar, with an emergency crash axe mid-flight in what authorities have described as a "terrorist attack."

According to Israeli media and investigative officials, al-Hammami’s plan involved killing the captain, then continuing the flight on its scheduled route before deliberately crashing into a site such as Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv or one of the Azrieli towers in the city. He allegedly aimed to delay detection of the attack until the aircraft was close enough to the target to prevent intervention. Reports also indicate he considered alternative targets, including a U.S. military installation in Jordan if he could not reach Israel.

Investigations have found that al-Hammami planned the attack well before joining flydubai. He is believed to have specifically sought employment with an airline operating flights to Tel Aviv, and he traveled to Ben Gurion Airport earlier this year to gather intelligence for the plot. Officials say he originally planned to carry out the attack in July but postponed it, possibly because a friend was among the crew on that earlier flight.

Al-Hammami, 29, has an Omani father and a Syrian mother. He reportedly worked for Oman Air from 2018 until mid-2025 but was removed from flying duties and reassigned to desk work due to concerns about his extremist views. He briefly joined Royal Air Maroc but did not fly with them before being hired by flydubai, which conducted criminal background checks but did not investigate signs of radicalization, according to officials.

The co-pilot used the emergency crash axe about two hours into the flight. Despite serious injuries, Captain Machchhar was able to unlock the cockpit door, enabling other crew members and passengers, including two off-duty flydubai pilots, to restrain al-Hammami and safely land the plane in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The aircraft reportedly lost over 16,000 feet of altitude in approximately 30 seconds during the incident. The captain has since spoken with both Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Authorities in Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries are continuing their investigation. Israeli security agencies have raised questions about how al-Hammami was allowed to pilot a flight into Israel given prior concerns about his extremist sympathies. Israel typically vets all foreign pilots flying into the country, and Oman has no formal diplomatic ties with Israel, leading to scrutiny over potential security lapses.

Israeli officials have stated that the Transportation Ministry is responsible for flight security vetting, though political figures, including opposition leaders, have criticized what they see as systemic failures by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Meanwhile, investigations are ongoing to determine if al-Hammami acted alone or had connections to extremist organizations, with no confirmed links to Iran so far. The case has prompted Israel to review its foreign civil aviation security arrangements.