On October 4, a flydubai flight FZ1073 traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv experienced a cockpit attack. The co‑pilot, identified by media as Hamam al‑Hammami, struck Captain Smit Machchhar with a crash axe, seriously injuring him. The aircraft descended more than 17,000 feet from 34,000 feet and landed safely at Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, where al‑Hammami was taken into custody.
The incident has prompted a multi‑national investigation. UAE Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said the attack was an attempted terrorist act and that investigations are ongoing to establish the full circumstances, motives and any connections. The Australian Federal Police, together with Victoria Police and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, are examining the co‑pilot’s links to Australia. Israeli agencies, including Shin Bet, Mossad, the military and the Transportation Ministry, are also investigating how the Omani national became part of the flight crew.
Al‑Hammami, an Omani national, studied in Australia on a student visa from 2015 to 2017, a visa that was cancelled in 2019 because he was no longer enrolled in a course. He had been barred from flying in Oman over concerns about radical ideological views and was removed from flight training. He worked for flydubai for about eight months and completed a three‑year distance‑learning course in aviation management at Buckinghamshire New University in the UK, though he did not receive pilot training at the institution.
Captain Machchhar was taken to a nearby hospital and later airlifted to Abu Dhabi, where he is reported to be in stable condition. Passengers and reserve pilots overpowered the attacker before the aircraft landed safely. Investigations continue to uncover the motives and any links related to the incident.
