The co-pilot accused of trying to seize an Israel-bound Flydubai jet and crash it into Ben Gurion Airport began moving towards extremism while studying in Melbourne in 2017, the United Arab Emirates’ attorney-general has said.
Hamam al-Hammami allegedly attacked the captain with a crash axe during flight 1073 on September 30, as the aircraft travelled towards Tel Aviv. Passengers and crew fought to regain control after the plane plunged 14,000ft in 29 seconds.
UAE Attorney-General Hamad Saif al Shamsi said al-Hammami had provided investigators with a “detailed confession” in the presence of his lawyer, and claimed he had acted alone.
In a statement, Mr al Shamsi said the suspect’s “drift towards extremism and terrorism first emerged in 2017, while he was studying in Australia”.
He said al-Hammami had been influenced by Takfiri ideology through extremist literature and online material glorifying terrorist organisations and suicide attacks.
“This influence subsequently developed into the adoption of ideas advocating violence and terrorism,” Mr al Shamsi said.
“He also drew inspiration from the 11 September 2001 attacks, and the idea of carrying out a similar operation using an aircraft became firmly established in his thinking.”
Takfir refers to one Muslim declaring another to be a non-believer. The doctrine has sometimes been used as a justification for violence.
Alleged plan to crash aircraft
The Emirates News Agency reported that al-Hammami had regularly attended a mosque affiliated with the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. He allegedly told investigators that he met people connected with a centre known as “My Centre” through those visits.
Mr al Shamsi said al-Hammami had used two earlier flights to Tel Aviv to familiarise himself with the route and the airport. The alleged hijacking attempt was carried out with the intention of causing “the greatest possible number of human casualties”, he added.
The captain, Smit Machchhar, was praised for preventing the aircraft from being taken over. Passenger footage showed him wounded and lying on the cabin floor as others treated him, while another pilot appeared to be unconscious nearby.
Passengers could be heard telling one of the pilots: “You saved the plane.”
According to the UAE attorney-general, al-Hammami said he had prepared psychologically and physically for the attack by watching material promoting terrorism and taking boxing lessons with a private coach.
Investigators found that he had met Flydubai’s professional and security requirements, including holding a pilot’s licence and supplying a certificate of good conduct. Mr al Shamsi said those checks had not revealed signs of extremist views or an intention to carry out a terrorist plot.
Al-Hammami had previously been a trainee with Oman’s national airline in 2024 but was removed from flying duties amid concerns that he might have been influenced by radical groups. He was moved to an administrative role at Oman Air before joining Flydubai in January this year.
Royal Air Maroc confirmed that he completed three months of training with the airline in 2025, although his subsequent application to work there was rejected.
Al-Hammami was born in the UAE and obtained Omani nationality through his father. His mother is Syrian.
