The Sydney Morning Herald
· collected 2026-10-05 · by Alexander Cornwell, Maayan Lubell
According to Israeli officials familiar with the investigation, flydubai co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami planned to hijack and crash flight FZ1073 into Ben Gurion Airport before he joined the airline. Al-Hammami had previously flown to Tel Aviv earlier in the year but decided against an attack at that time. On the ill-fated flight last Wednesday, passengers subdued al-Hammami after he allegedly stabbed his captain with a crash axe; the pilot managed to land the plane safely in Saudi Arabia where authorities detained the co-pilot and transferred him to the UAE for further investigation.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On September 30, 2026, a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv signaled an emergency over Jordanian airspace and was diverted to Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia. The plane carried around 150 passengers, mostly Israeli citizens. Initially, concerns about a possible hijacking prompted the Israeli air force to scramble fighter jets as a precautionary measure.
However, after landing safely in Tabuk, it emerged that the emergency signals were triggered due to a physical altercation between the two pilots rather than a hijacking attempt. The incident did not result in any injuries among passengers or crew. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, held urgent consultations with security officials regarding the diversion.
The commercial flight had taken off from Dubai and was en route to Tel Aviv when it began transmitting emergency signals shortly after takeoff. Following a brief period of uncertainty, the aircraft successfully landed in Saudi Arabia without further incident.
Written for “Israel Bound Flight Diverts Due To In…” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 305 other(s) covering the same event.
The flydubai co-pilot who allegedly stabbed his captain in a suspected attempt to crash the plane last week told interrogators in the United Arab Emirates he planned to do so before being hired by the airline, according to two Israeli officials with knowledge of the probe.
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he → stab → probe
A third source briefed on the UAE investigation said the co-pilot, Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, planned to crash Wednesday’s flight into Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.
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pilot → brief → Aviv
He had also operated a flight to Tel Aviv earlier this year and intended to hijack and crash the plane then, but chose not to, the source said.
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source → operate → plane
It was not immediately clear why the co-pilot changed his mind on that previous flight, although he is thought to have known someone onboard, the source said.
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source → change → someone
The sources all spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the investigation.
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sources → speak → investigation
UAE and Israeli authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did flydubai.
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flydubai → respond → comment
Al-Hammami, the co-pilot on flydubai flight FZ1073, which was bound for Israel from Dubai last Wednesday, attacked the pilot with an emergency crash axe, the UAE prosecutor general has said.
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general → bind → axe
The prosecutor called the incident a “terrorist attack”.
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prosecutor → call → incident
The airline and Israeli and UAE officials have not named the co-pilot but have said he is from Oman.
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he → name → Oman
Two sources have confirmed his identity as Hamam al-Hammami.
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sources → confirm → Hammami
Reuters has been unable to independently reach al-Hammami, who is in UAE custody, for comment.
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who → reach → comment
The UAE has not announced any formal charges against him and it is not known if he has appointed legal counsel.
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he → announce → counsel
Oman has not commented on the incident.
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Oman → comment → incident
The two Israeli officials said the co-pilot told interrogators he had applied for a job at Dubai state-owned flydubai after searching for airlines that flew to Tel Aviv.
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that → say → Aviv
The third source said the UAE was continually updating Israel about the investigation.
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UAE → say → investigation
A disaster on board flight FZ1073 was averted when passengers and crew subdued the co-pilot after he allegedly stabbed the pilot.
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he → avert → pilot
The pilot, Indian national Smit Machchhar, survived the attack and has been hailed as a hero for managing to open the cockpit door to allow passengers to subdue the co-pilot.
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passengers → survive → pilot
The plane was carrying more than 170 passengers and crew, most of them Israeli.
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most → carry → them
A reserve flydubai pilot travelling on the flight took control of the aircraft and landed it at a regional airport in north-western Saudi Arabia, where the co-pilot was detained by Saudi authorities and then transferred to the UAE on Thursday.
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pilot → travel → Thursday
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said pilots who are citizens of countries that Israel does not have diplomatic relations with, such as Oman, are not permitted to operate flights to Israel.
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Israel → say → Israel
It is unclear how the co-pilot came to be assigned to the flight to Tel Aviv, and Netanyahu has since ordered a review of foreign airlines flying to Israel.
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Netanyahu → come → Israel
A multi-agency Australian counter-terrorism unit is investigating links to Australia of the co-pilot, who was once enrolled at RMIT University in Melbourne.
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who → investigate → Melbourne
A fourth source said the co-pilot studied at the university about a decade ago.
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pilot → say → university
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what → get → world
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