The Omani co-pilot who allegedly attempted to hijack a FlyDubai flight to Israel last week told interrogators in the United Arab Emirates last week that he planned the attack even before he was employed by the Emirati airline more than a year ago, according to an Israeli official. He had intended to crash the FlyDubai jet into Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, the official said, adding that the co-pilot, who multiple sources familiar with the investigation have identified to CBS News as Omani national Hamam al Hamami, had flown to Israel in the past. A series of major security failures preceded the alleged hijacking attempt, and insiders told CBS News on Monday that the incident should have been prevented long before the plane even took off.
Israel's own security protocols should've prohibited al Hamami from ever flying to Tel Aviv, according to Eytan Ben David, a former deputy head of aviation security at El Al, Israel's flagship airline. The Sept. 30 flight was approaching Israel when the co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain with the plane's crash ax and attempted to crash the aircraft, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, passengers on board the plane and the flight captain. Israel receives lists of passengers and crew for all flights into the country in advance, and, at least in the past, each individual was checked by a security division inside the transportation ministry to make sure they posed no threat, Ben David told CBS News.
An Omani pilot should never have been permitted to fly into Israel under its current guidelines, as Oman does not have formal diplomatic relations with Israel, said Ben David, who is also a former deputy head of Israel's National Security Council. "It's enough that you see that he is of Omani nationality to say, 'Stop, he cannot fly to Israel because he is Omani, replace him with another pilot,'" said Ben David. "It's a huge failure, and it's a big miracle," he added of the seemingly narrowly averted catastrophe.
Ben David said he once personally prohibited a pilot with Iranian citizenship from flying a Turkish Airlines plane into Israel under the same rules, which extend to Iran. Sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News it is possible al Hamami has dual citizenship, which could explain how he was allowed to fly to Israel. Smit Machchhar, the FlyDubai captain, was able to fight off his co-pilot long enough to unlock the cockpit door, he told India's leader last week from a hospital bed in Saudi Arabia where he was recovering from stab wounds.
A group of Israeli passengers and FlyDubai staff then overpowered the co-pilot, and two off-duty pilots who were on the flight managed to gain control of the aircraft and make an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. Israel's government passed a law in 2023 that requires foreign airlines to submit a list of passengers and crew ahead of all flights to Israel, aimed at preventing terrorist incidents. Following the alleged attempted hijacking last week, Israel's transportation ministry, as well as its domestic and foreign security agencies, have all said they were not responsible for vetting foreign flight crews.
Ben David said the responsibility to properly vet foreign pilots primarily falls on the security branch inside Israel's transportation ministry. Israel has made efforts for many years to secure its own airlines and vet their personnel. But foreign airlines and their crews have emerged as a potential gap in aviation security, and Israel's near tragedy last week is likely to trigger a reevaluation, Ben David said.
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