flydubai co-pilot terror case exposes vetting failures across three countries
In short
A flydubai co-pilot is suspected of attempting a terrorist act on a flight bound for Tel Aviv, and the UAE attorney general said he attempted to carry out a terrorist act. Investigators in the UAE, Oman and Israel are examining how he was hired this year although Omani authorities had barred him from flying in 2024 over concerns about extremist views, according to people familiar with the matter. Israel's transport ministry says it does not vet foreign airline crew, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered a review of security on foreign airline flights to Israel.
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A co-pilot at the Dubai-based airline flydubai is suspected of attempting a terrorist act on a flight bound for Tel Aviv, with the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Israel all suspecting he tried to crash the aircraft, according to an account by the tech outlet cnBeta. The UAE attorney general said on Saturday that the co-pilot attempted to carry out a terrorist act. The three countries are investigating whether he acted alone and have not found links to any foreign power or major terrorist group. [ 1 ]
People familiar with the matter said Omani authorities had reviewed his online activity, concluded that his interest in radical ideology made him unsuitable to fly for state-owned Oman Air, barred him from flying, required him to attend a deradicalisation programme and moved him to administrative work — without widely circulating their concerns. When flydubai hired him in February, it did not contact Oman to verify his history, carried out a criminal background check and assigned him to the sensitive Tel Aviv route, which he flew several times, the account said. UAE authorities are investigating flydubai employees involved in the recruitment. [ 1 ]
Israel should have been a last line of defence: pilots from countries with no diplomatic relations with Israel, including Oman, are barred from flying there. Israel requires foreign airlines to submit passenger and crew lists in advance, and the tax authority said flydubai sent the list for flight 1073. But the transport ministry, which oversees foreign airlines, said it does not believe it has the authority or the expertise to vet crew and had never requested such lists since a database was created in 2023. It said flydubai had agreed in writing to check its pilots' backgrounds and nationality. A confidential 2024 report found the ministry had failed to adequately secure foreign airline flights, according to the account. [ 1 ]
UAE, Omani and Israeli officials said privately that there were major failures at every stage, from screening in the UAE and Israel to Oman's failure to share its concerns. The UAE declined to comment while the incident and its causes are investigated, and Oman's government spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he had ordered a review of security for foreign airline flights to Israel. Security experts called the lapse shocking given the two countries' surveillance and intelligence capabilities. [ 1 ]
The co-pilot, Hamami, is 29, with an Omani father and a Syrian mother. He lives in Dubai and travelled frequently to Syria as a teenager; investigators are examining whether he was radicalised during the long civil war there. He studied in Australia, and the Victoria state joint counterterrorism team said it is investigating his Australian links. He joined Oman Air in 2018, became a pilot in early 2022 and left in early 2025, then spent three months in training with Royal Air Maroc in Morocco without being hired before joining flydubai in February. flydubai was founded in 2009 and has more than 1,300 pilots flying to 140 airports. [ 1 ]
The official Xinhua news agency reported that the case of the flydubai co-pilot's mid-air attack remains full of doubts. [ 2 ]
Why it matters
The case involves a suspected attempt to bring down a civilian airliner heading for Israel and points to gaps in vetting spread across three countries, a subject a confidential Israeli report had already flagged in 2024. The Israeli prime minister's order for a review of foreign airline security, and continuing investigations in the UAE, Oman and Israel, suggest the arrangements for checking foreign crew on routes to Israel are likely to be revisited. The account notes that international aviation licences are essentially managed by individual states, so lapses in one country can go unseen elsewhere.
Key facts
- The UAE attorney general said the flydubai co-pilot attempted to carry out a terrorist act, and the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Israel suspect he tried to crash the aircraft in Tel Aviv, according to the tech outlet cnBeta. [ 1 ]
- The three countries are investigating whether he acted alone and have not found links to any foreign power or major terrorist group, the account said. [ 1 ]
- Oman had barred him from flying in 2024 after finding he browsed extremist websites and blogs, required him to attend a deradicalisation programme and assigned him administrative work, but did not widely circulate its concerns, people familiar with the matter said. [ 1 ]
- flydubai did not contact Oman to verify his history when it hired him in February; it carried out a criminal background check and assigned him to the Tel Aviv route, which he flew several times, and UAE authorities are investigating employees involved in the recruitment. [ 1 ]
- Israel's transport ministry said it lacks the authority and expertise to vet foreign airline crew, has never requested crew lists since a database was set up in 2023, and relies on foreign airlines' written commitments; the tax authority said flydubai sent the list for flight 1073. [ 1 ]
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he ordered a review of security for foreign airline flights to Israel. [ 1 ]
- A confidential state comptroller report in May 2024 found that Israeli aviation security had become lax, that responsibility was dispersed and that the transport ministry failed to supervise effectively because of staffing and budget problems, according to the account. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- Where and when the alleged attempt took place, and the flight's route and origin. The documents do not state the date or location of the flight; they say only that the aircraft was bound for Tel Aviv and that a list for flight 1073 was sent to Israeli authorities.
- Oman's handling of the co-pilot before he left for Dubai. The account of his online activity, the 2024 ban on flying and the deradicalisation programme comes from unnamed people familiar with the matter in a single outlet; Oman's government spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
- Whether he acted alone and whether he had any organisational links. Investigators in the three countries say the inquiry continues and that no links to a foreign power or major terrorist group have been found.
- Whether he was radicalised in Syria or in Australia. Investigators are examining both periods, and Australia's Victoria state joint counterterrorism team said it is investigating his Australian links; no conclusion has been reported.
- Which Israeli body is responsible for vetting foreign airline crew. The transport ministry says it was never told a database created in 2023 was operational or that it could request crew lists, while a person familiar with the database said the ministry never made a request; the two accounts are in dispute, and the ministry also says its remit covers inbound flight security but not crew vetting.
- The UAE attorney general said the co-pilot attempted to carry out a terrorist act. Reported by a single source so far
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered a review of security on foreign airline flights to Israel. Reported by a single source so far
- Israel's transport ministry said it does not believe it has the authority or the expertise to vet crew of foreign airlines flying to Israel, and said flydubai had agreed in writing to check its pilots' backgrounds and nationality. Reported by a single source so far