The co-pilot who attempted to hijack an Israel-bound flight learned to fly at a pilot-training company in Britain, according to reports.
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who → attempt → reports
Omani national Hamam Al Hammami, 29, severely wounded captain Smit Machchhar using the onboard crash axe as he tried to take control of the Flydubai plane on its way to Tel Aviv last week.
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he → wound → Aviv
Passengers and crew grappled with Al Hammami to regain control of the plane, which had plummeted 14,000ft in just 29 seconds.
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which → grapple → seconds
It is believed a British off-duty pilot was among the heroes.
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pilot → believe → heroes
Al Hammami, who studied at a British university, had previously 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 → study → officials
It has now been reported that Al Hammami undertook training with L3 Airline Academy, a pilot-training company in England that has since become part of Acron Aviation.
He is understood to have trained at one or more of the company's centres in England.
The company has major training facilities in Southampton, Bournemouth, as well as a simulator centre near Gatwick.
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company → report → Gatwick
When approached, Acron Aviation declined to say whether Al Hammami had trained with the company.
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Hammami → approach → company
The suspected attacker has been identified as Hamam Al Hammami, an Omani national
Footage filmed by passengers shows the wounded captain Smit Machchhar lying on the floor as others tend to him
Passengers file out of the rear of the plane, which appeared to show a section of the rudder missing, after it landed in Saudi Arabia
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it → suspect → Arabia
A spokesman told The Telegraph: 'We were saddened to hear of this incident, and our thoughts are with everyone affected.
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thoughts → tell → everyone
As a matter of policy, we do not publicly comment on whether any individual is or has been a student with us.
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individual → comment → us
'We will, of course, assist the relevant authorities, if necessary, in any way we can as they investigate this incident.'
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they → assist → incident
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 social media posts, praising giving them a 'pre-emptive slap'.
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Hammami → enrol → slap
The university said that Al Hammami did not take any pilot training at the school.
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Hammami → say → school
According to the university's website, its aviation management courses 'look into the background operations, logistics, security and management of the aviation industry'.
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courses → accord → industry
It is understood he also studied engineering at a university in Australia.
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he → understand → Australia
Al Hammami was born in the UAE and his mother is Syrian.
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mother → bear → UAE
He obtained Omani nationality from his father.
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He → obtain → father
US and Israeli intelligence believe the co-pilot planned to crash the plane into Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport or a tower block in the city.
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pilot → believe → city
Benjamin Netanyahu's government had been prepared to shoot the plane down to avoid an 'Israeli 9/11', sources told CBS News.
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sources → prepare → News
As part of long-standing procedure for this type of threat, the Israeli Air Force tried to contact the Flydubai cockpit without success before a command centre was put together and fighter jets scrambled.
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jets → stand → success
Authorities closed Israel's airspace as the jets flew to investigate but called them back shortly afterwards after the plane, which had been around 400 miles from the Israeli border, turned toward Saudi Arabia.
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which → close → Arabia
Had flight 1073 continued on its path, the Israeli jets were set to fly into Jordan and come close enough to inspect the plane's cockpit and cabin.
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jets → continue → cockpit
Having fed their observations back to the command centre and the Air Force, the jets would have remained in place as officials assessed the information.
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officials → feed → information
If there had been panic on board, officials would have consulted with the defence minister and Mr Netanyahu to decide their next move.
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officials → consult → move
Protocol demands rogue flights approaching Israel are shot out of the sky but only the prime minister could have made such a decision.
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minister → demand → decision
The Flydubai flight would have been labelled rogue had it continued on its path, maintained radio silence and indicated no demands from its hijacker.
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it → label → hijacker
However, after plunging 14,000ft in 29 seconds, the plane's captain fought the co-pilot long enough to unlock the cockpit door, after which passengers and staff overpowered the alleged attacker, allowing them to land safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
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them → plunge → Tabuk
The sources said shooting the jet down would be preferable to hundreds dying in a plane crash at Israel's Azrieli buildings, Ben Gurion airport or another 'high-value target'.
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hundreds → say → buildings
Smit Machchhar has been hailed a hero for saving the lives of the 174 passengers on board
According to reports by CNN, two posts were made to a LinkedIn page matching Al Hammami's identity, just nine hours after the attack.
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posts → hail → 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 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 → show → 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
…and 5 more, not listed.
The Aporia
