Co-pilot in FlyDubai attack identified as Omani national Hamam al-Hammami – reports

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The co-pilot suspected of stabbing the captain of an Israel-bound FlyDubai flight was an Omani national named Hamam al-Hammami, according to reports.

He was banned from flying last year over concerns that he had radical ideological views, according to Saudi state media.

The attacker was born in the United Arab Emirates to an Omani father and Syrian mother, CNN reported.

On Wednesday, the FlyDubai flight carrying 182 passengers plunged over 14,000ft in less than 30 seconds as it flew ⁠over Saudi Arabia on the journey from the United Arab Emirates to Israel.

It was diverted to Tabuk in northwestern Saudi Arabia for an emergency landing after passengers wrestled and incapacitated a man who attacked his co-pilot with an axe in a suspected hijacking.

Israeli authorities told CNN that al-Hammami had been working for FlyDubai only for eight months.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the suspect was believed to have undergone “Islamist radical indoctrination”.

The co-pilot of flight FZ1073 attempted to carry out a "terrorist" attack during the flight, the United Arab Emirates prosecutor general said on Saturday, according to the state news agency WAM. The co-pilot ‌attacked pilot Smit Machchhar inside the cockpit ‌with an axe and ‌attempted to take control of ⁠the aircraft, the prosecutor general said.

Investigations are ongoing to determine the circumstances of the incident, the motives and any related connections, as well as to examine physical and digital evidence, he added.

The Associated Press quoted three people with knowledge of the situation, including a Gulf and a Western diplomat, confirming the identity of the attacker. All spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

The Gulf diplomat said investigations are underway to establish whether he acted as a “lone wolf or has any connection with any extremist groups.”