The investigation into the alleged cockpit attack on a flydubai flight to Tel Aviv has brought renewed scrutiny on the background of the Omani co-pilot accused of attacking Indian captain Smit Machchhar.
The co-pilot has been identified as Hamam al-Hammami, CNN reported, citing an Israeli official and Saudi state media. He is currently in the UAE and is being investigated over the incident, including whether it had any connection to terrorism. Reports by CNN, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Associated Press (AP) and ABC News have since shed light on al-Hammami’s employment history and his alleged links to extremist material. The incident has also prompted an investigation in Israel. Agencies including Shin Bet and Mossad are examining how an Omani citizen came to be part of the aircraft’s crew.
Sources cited by ABC News said he was cooperating with investigators and has claimed that he intended to crash the aircraft in Israel. The UAE attorney general has opened an investigation into whether the incident was connected to “terrorist activity”, CNN reported, citing the state-run WAM news agency. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said al-Hammami underwent “Islamist radicalisation” and that Israeli authorities are investigating whether anyone had sent him. CNN said investigators are examining his employment history, education and social media activity as they try to determine how he ended up in the cockpit of a flight bound for Israel.
Saudi Arabia handed al-Hammami over to the UAE on Thursday.
CNN said a source familiar with the matter confirmed that the profile belonged to al-Hammami. WSJ reported that despite the concerns surrounding his previous employment, flydubai hired him. Al-Hammami spent nearly seven years working for Oman Air. However, it remained unclear how closely flydubai scrutinised his background before employing him. Despite the discovery, he was retained by the airline in an administrative capacity, but was removed from flight training. This eventually placed him on the UAE-Israel route, despite Oman not recognising Israel. Al-Hammami is an Omani citizen who was born in the UAE. His father was Omani and his mother was Syrian.
ABC News reported that extremist material was found in al-Hammami’s possession in 2024, when he was training to become a co-pilot at Oman Air. The profile listed a subsequent stint at Royal Air Maroc, where he reportedly joined in June 2025 and left in January 2026. Oman Air had prevented him from flying because of concerns over extremist views, according to Associated Press (AP).
An Israeli official told CNN that he had been working with flydubai for about eight months. Al-Hammami spent considerable time outside Oman, particularly in Syria, where he was influenced by extremist ideas before eventually moving to the UAE, according to a report by Al Arabiya English.
The Jerusalem Post, citing sources close to the investigation, reported that al-Hammami does not hold a second nationality. ABC News reported that the airline has suspended flights to Tel Aviv until further notice.
Flydubai told CNN that it could not comment while the investigation was ongoing.
