Investigators probing the near-catastrophic Dubai to Tel Aviv flight said the FlyDubai co-pilot attempted “a terrorist operation” when he assaulted the captain, as more details emerge about the chaotic incident that miraculously ended with a safe landing.
The copilot attacked the pilot in the cockpit with a crash axe and then attempted to seize control of the plane’s command, UAE federal prosecutor Hamad Al Shamisi said in a statement published Saturday on state-run WAM news agency.
The attacker was an Omani national named Hamam al-Hammami, the Associated Press reported on Saturday, citing three people with knowledge of the situation.
The investigation into flight FZ1073 is still ongoing, and is examining possible motives behind the operation and any parties it might be linked to, Al Shamisi said, in addition to conducting technical tests and investigating physical and digital evidence.
Both pilots were moved to the UAE on Friday for questioning from Saudi Arabia, where the Boeing Co. 737 Max aircraft carrying more than 170 passengers made an emergency landing at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Airport. The plane narrowly avoiding catastrophe when it was forced into a steep plunge.
The co-pilot had been banned from flying by Oman over concerns he’d adopted radical ideological views, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter who weren’t identified.
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