Tel Aviv: Hamam al-Hammami, the Omani co-pilot behind the September 30 terrorist attack aboard Flydubai Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv, had planned to direct the airliner into Ben Gurion Airport, according to reports published on Sunday by The Times of Israel.
Currently detained and undergoing interrogation within the United Arab Emirates, al-Hammami informed investigators that his plan involved operating the flight in a routine manner after incapacitating the captain, securing all mandatory landing clearances, and subsequently crashing into an airport facility or stationed aircraft, as detailed by Hebrew media sources cited by The Times of Israel.
By deferring action until the final phase, he calculated he could preclude anyone from recognising the unfolding situation, sounding alarms, or obstructing his objective. According to The Times of Israel, that consideration accounted for why al-Hammami delayed seizing control of the flight deck until the aeroplane traversed Jordanian airspace.
His actions were thwarted when Captain Smit Machchhar, despite suffering an assault and stab wounds from al-Hammami, succeeded in unlatching the cockpit portal, allowing a group of Israeli travellers to grapple with and restrain the assailant, while an individual among them steadied the aircraft prior to two off-duty aviators stepping in to assume command of the controls.
Reports cited by The Times of Israel indicated that al-Hammami had visited Ben Gurion Airport on multiple occasions during preceding months following flight duties with flydubai. He disclosed to interrogators that during his June arrival, his entire focus concentrated on gathering intelligence and mapping out the assault.
He subsequently scheduled the operation for July, though ultimately aborted the initiative at the final juncture due to a personal friendship with a member of the cabin crew. Israeli security personnel have not directly interrogated al-Hammami themselves, with the intelligence being transmitted to Israel via Saudi and Emirati investigative channels, as noted by The Times of Israel.
Israel has requested that the UAE broaden its questioning parameters to encompass flight attendants, according to Channel 12 reporting conveyed via The Times of Israel. Meanwhile, Channel 13 reported, as cited by The Times of Israel, that al-Hammami told investigators, “I looked into which airline flies to Tel Aviv. That’s why I chose flydubai. I planned it even before I was accepted.”
An earlier account published by the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera indicated that al-Hammami intended to strike a skyscraper, drawing upon Israeli intelligence assessments, as reported by The Times of Israel. According to that account, which outlined a chronological sequence of events, al-Hammami requested a prayer break at 9:15 am before launching an assault on the pilot using the flight deck's crash hatchet, sparking a violent confrontation as Machchhar fought to unlock the door from within.
Around 9:20 am, Tali Manes accompanied her five-year-old child to the washroom area, where she began overhearing the altercation transpiring inside the cockpit. She alerted an off-duty aviator seated within business class.
The off-duty captain manipulated the exterior handle as Machchhar managed to release the latch, opening the entryway to expose al-Hammami striking the pilot, the documentation stated. “He’s killing the pilot,” Manes shouted.
Recognising that his initial objective was no longer viable, al-Hammami initiated a steep dive at 9:21 am targeting the desert floor, alongside efforts to fracture the guidance mechanisms to hinder any alternative attempts to stabilise the airframe, the overview noted.
Nevertheless, several Israeli passengers forced entry into the cockpit, overpowering the perpetrator and levelling the aircraft. Initially, off-duty aviators who intervened to pilot the transport broadcast the 7700 code, signifying a general emergency, at 9:31 am, according to the report.
By 9:35 am, al-Hammami had been subdued, and by 9:38 am, the replacement flight crew altered the transponder signal to the more specific 7500 designation, denoting unlawful cockpit intrusion, Corriere della Sera conveyed, in coverage highlighted by The Times of Israel. Saudi air traffic management instructed the aviators to execute an unscheduled touchdown in Tabuk, with the commercial jet making contact with the runway at 10:57 am.
The transport carried approximately 180 passengers, predominantly Israeli nationals, alongside the flight crew. The travellers returned home late Wednesday via a chartered repatriation service departing from Saudi Arabia, a nation maintaining no formal diplomatic ties with Israel, while Machchhar and al-Hammami were sent back to the UAE, with Machchhar receiving medical care and the perpetrator facing formal questioning.
Separately, the Ynet news site quoted a senior Emirati source indicating that al-Hammami faces the prospect of capital punishment, as referenced by The Times of Israel. The briefing noted that authorities in Abu Dhabi intend to seek the most severe sentence available.
It additionally highlighted that Israeli intelligence representatives operated within the United Arab Emirates to participate in the examination of al-Hammami, who holds Omani nationality, according to The Times of Israel.
Building on these investigative developments, preliminary Israeli intelligence assessments conveyed to CBS News by individuals acquainted with the situation indicated that the reported hijacking attempt likely constituted a lone-wolf operation.
The inquiry remains actively ongoing, with authorities exploring every prospective angle, those knowledgeable sources disclosed to CBS News. Expanding on the timeline, the Wednesday commercial journey operating from Dubai to Tel Aviv neared Israeli airspace when the co-pilot allegedly attacked the flight captain and sought to direct the airframe downward in a crash, statements from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, individuals travelling on the aircraft, and the flight captain confirmed.