The 'terrorist' pilot who attempted to hijack a Flydubai passenger plane had 'dreamed' of crashing it into Tel Aviv's main airport and causing mass casualties, sources claim.
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sources → attempt → casualties
Hamam al-Hammami, 29, severely wounded captain Smit Machchhar using the onboard crash axe as he frantically tried to take control of the plane on its way to Israel on Wednesday.
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he → wound → Wednesday
Heroic passengers and crew grappled with al-Hammami to regain control of the aircraft, which plummeted 14,000ft in just 29 seconds during the terrifying incident.
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which → grapple → incident
Israeli sources now claim al-Hammami revealed during interrogation that he had plotted the hijack before he was even accepted as a pilot with Flydubai - and had 'tried to get hired' at several other airlines.
'The dream was to crash into Ben-Gurion Airport,' he added, according to a source speaking to The Jerusalem Post.
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he → claim → Post
Al-Hammami - who authorities believe could have acted as a 'lone wolf' - is said to have travelled to Ben-Gurion Airport on a number of occasions before he unleashed the attack, most recently in July to gather intelligence.
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he → believe → intelligence
During that month he intended to carry out his plot, but aborted his actions when he realised a crew member he was friendly with was on board.
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he → intend → board
Al-Hammami had also considered crashing the plane into a tower block close to the country’s military headquarters.
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Hammami → consider → headquarters
Hamam al-Hammami, the suspected hijacker of the Flydubai aircraft, 'dreamed' of crashing it into Tel Aviv's main airport and causing mass casualties, sources claim
Al-Hammami is said to have revealed during interrogation that he planned to kill Captain Smit Machchhar (pictured) before flying on to Tel Aviv undetected and crashing the aircraft
According to Italian outlet Corriere Della Sera, Israeli intelligence revealed al-Hammami planned to kill Machchhar from behind the locked cockpit door before flying on as planned to Tel Aviv without suspicion.
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Hammami → suspect → suspicion
As he neared the destination, he would fly into one of the Azrieli towers close to Israel's military headquarters, the Kirya, in central Tel Aviv.
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he → near → Aviv
The style of the attack would have mimicked the Al-Qaeda terrorist attack on New York's Twin Towers on September 11, 2001.
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style → mimic → September
Al-Hammami is said to have begun his attack over Jordan, around 10 minutes away from the border with Israel - which would have left virtually no time for IDF fighter jets to intervene.
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jets → say → time
The latest revelations come as it was revealed al-Hammami held extremist views and said women should be 'stomped on' during religious rants posted on his social media.
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women → come → media
While enrolled at Buckinghamshire New University (BNU) – where he studied for a three-year, distance-learning degree in aviation before graduating in 2023 – al-Hammami seemingly encouraged violence towards women in a series of posts, praising giving them a 'pre-emptive slap'.
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Hammami → enrol → slap
He also appears to have commended Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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He → appear → Ukraine
The account 'Pilot Hamam al-Hammami', linked to the co-pilot and which has since been deleted, appeared to support severe punishments justified by reference to Islamic law.
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which → link → law
In one exchange, the user told a woman: 'I'd stomp on your head, wipe the floor with you, make you an example to others, and then divorce you.'
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you → tell → you
Another post, made during a discussion about a man striking a woman, said: 'He gave her a pre-emptive slap so she would redefine her boundaries, just as Russia slapped Ukraine to adjust its borders.
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Russia → make → borders
Al-Hammami worked with Oman's national airline as a trainee in 2024, but was removed from flying because of concerns that he may have been influenced by radical groups from time spent in Syria, according to officials.
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he → work → officials
He was then moved to an administrative job at Oman Air.
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He → move → Air
Two other posts were reportedly made to a LinkedIn page strongly matching al-Hammami's identity last Wednesday, just nine hours after the attack.
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posts → make → attack
The first post reportedly featured a series of clips filmed in the cockpits of a Boeing 737 Max aircraft.
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post → feature → aircraft
One clip, geolocated to Dubai International Airport, zoomed in on the plane that belongs to the Israeli airline El Al.
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that → geolocate → airline
The passengers who survived the hijacking finally landed safely at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, having diverted to Saudi Arabia.
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who → survive → Arabia
Al-Hammami is said to have 'dreamed' of crashing the plane into the airport
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Hammami → say → airport
The co-pilot (pictured) used the cockpit's crash axe in his attempt to take control of the Flydubai plane
The cockpit screen showed the flight number – OMA624 – and the date, October 11, 2023, which matches the time when Al Hammami worked at Oman Air.
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Hammami → picture → Air
The flight number corresponds to a flight that usually travels from Dubai to Muscat.
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that → correspond → Muscat
Other clips showed more planes from El Al, and one from another Israeli airline, Arkia.
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clips → show → airline
It ends with a photo of Ayman al-Zawahiri, who led Al Qaeda after Osama Bin Laden's death, and a photo of Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, who killed nine people in a 2009 suicide bombing.
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who → end → bombing
The second post on the profile shows an AI-generated image of Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem – Islam's three holiest sites – linked by a glowing trail.
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post → show → trail
In the background, a poem is being recited, speaking of rejecting humiliation, not fearing death and defending one's dignity.
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poem → recite → dignity
On the day of the attack, BNU said its licence to sponsor international students had been suspended by the Home Office over fears regarding its compliance with sponsorship duties.
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licence → say → duties
It said 'many of the issues raised by the Home Office relate to historic international student recruitment activity'.
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many → say → activity
The Home Office said the suspension had been unrelated to al-Hammami or the Flydubai attack.
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suspension → say → Hammami
Al-Hammami is accused of attacking the plane's Indian pilot in what the United Arab Emirates prosecutor general described as an attempted terrorist attack.
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general → accuse → attack
An Israeli official told The Times Of Israel on Thursday: 'His social media accounts [say] clearly that he has been radicalised into jihadist ideology.
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he → tell → ideology
He talks about killing Jews.'
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He → talk → Jews
The LinkedIn account linked to al-Hammami, which has now been deleted, showed he worked at Oman Air for seven years, leaving in February 2025, and joined Royal Air Maroc in June 2025 before departing in January 2026.
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he → link → January
It made no mention of Flydubai.
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It → make → Flydubai
It was not immediately clear to what extent the co-pilot was vetted when he was hired by the UAE-based airline.
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he → vet → airline
However, it was confirmed by a Gulf diplomat that he had undergone standard security checks before being hired – but it appears these checks focused on whether he had been convicted on criminal charges and didn't go deeper into examining his background for signs of radicalisation.
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he → confirm → radicalisation
…and 17 more, not listed.
The Aporia
