The Omani flydubai pilot who attempted to hijack Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30 planned to commit a suicide attack with the aircraft, targeting a Ben-Gurion Airport passenger terminal, United Arab Emirates Attorney-General Hamad Saif al-Shamsi said, according to the Emirates News Agency (WAM).
Shamsi found that the attack was premeditated, with the pilot, 29-year-old Hamam al-Hammami, being indoctrinated in extremism beginning in 2017 while studying in Australia.
Hammami intended to cause the highest number of casualties possible, Shamsi added, with the pilot drawing inspiration from the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The pilot confessed that the idea of committing such an act was part of what drove him to pursue an aviation career in the first place, Shamsi said, noting that Hammami claims to have acted alone in both his planning and execution.
Shamsi’s statement noted Hammami’s aviation career history, with the Omani national having worked for four years at Oman Air before a short-lived position with Moroccan carrier Royal Air Maroc in 2025, and joining flydubai in January.
UAE: Hammami met flydubai professional, security requirements
UAE investigators determined that Hammami met both the professional and security requirements to join flydubai at the time he was hired, and the airline was unaware of his intentions or extremism.
The UAE attorney-general further discussed the midair response to the attempted hijacking, during which Hammami attacked flydubai Capt. Smit Machchhar with a cockpit crash axe.
Citing testimony from the flight’s passengers and crew, Shamsi said a flydubai captain, who was onboard to operate the return flight from Tel Aviv to Dubai, was able to enter the cockpit using a security code after seeing the door open and close repeatedly.
Then, the return flight’s captain confronted the attacking co-pilot, with several passengers and one crew member assisting him, and eventually diverted the flight to a safe landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
The investigation is ongoing, and Shamsi said the UAE Public Prosecution will announce any new findings.