Flydubai Co-Pilot Accused of Suicide Attack Plot on Tel Aviv
The UAE attorney general said Friday that a Flydubai co-pilot planned to crash a Dubai-to-Tel Aviv flight into Ben Gurion Airport. The stated goal was to kill as many people as possible.
- 160+ passengers were aboard; none were harmed.
- 16,000 feet: the plane's drop in 30 seconds before landing in Tabuk.
- 2 earlier flights to Tel Aviv served to scout the route, officials said.
- 29-year-old Omani worked at Oman Air, Royal Air Maroc, then Flydubai.
Why it matters: Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi called it a premeditated plot with a terrorist objective. He said al-Hammami targeted the passenger terminal.
- Al Shamsi said al-Hammami confessed 9/11 shaped his choice of an aviation career.
- Al Shamsi traced what he called a turn toward extremism to 2017, in Australia.
How 18 sources split on this story
Where they split: Outlets differ on who was attacked: the Wall Street Journal says the captain, with a crash ax; Mediaite says a fellow pilot was stabbed.
Center coverage, 8 sources: The center highlights the 9/11 inspiration and how a fellow pilot stopped the attempt.
Left coverage, 5 sources: The left focuses on the investigation's preliminary findings, describing al-Hammami as the alleged hijacker.
Right coverage, 5 sources: The right centers the official UAE timeline and the explicit targeting of Israel's main airport.
What’s next: The UAE attorney general's investigation continues, with more findings possible.
- Saudi Arabia is running its own investigation into the incident.
- What drove al-Hammami's turn starting in 2017, and did anyone else know of his plans?
- How did airline vetting at three carriers miss warning signs, if any existed?
