Flydubai co-pilot who attacked Indian captain identified as Omani citizen

An Omani citizen, Hamam al-Hammami, has been identified as the flydubai co-pilot who allegedly attacked Indian Captain Smit Machchhar aboard a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight. The aircraft diverted to Saudi Arabia after the captain and passengers overpowered the attacker.

New York: An Omani citizen, Hamam al-Hammami, has been identified as the flydubai co-pilot who attacked Indian Captain Smit Machchhar and allegedly attempted to sabotage a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight on Wednesday, according to a US media report.

Al-Hammami was reportedly barred from flying previously by Omani authorities over his radical ideological views, The Wall Street Journal reported, quoting people familiar with the matter.

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On the flydubai flight FZ1073, he stabbed and seriously injured Machchhar, who fought back and managed to open the cockpit door, enabling passengers to overpower the attacker.

The flight, carrying 174 passengers, transmitted emergency signals and made a rapid descent of more than 17,000 feet from 34,000 feet before diverting to Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Airport in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk city, where authorities took al-Hammami into custody.

“The alleged attacker is an Omani national named Hamam al-Hammami,” the WSJ report said.

He was born to an Omani father and a Syrian mother, according to the report.

On Friday, Machchhar spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the phone, recounting the terrifying moments after being attacked. He said he was fighting for his life but was determined not to let others die.

He did not disclose what triggered the attack on him or the motive of the co-pilot.

Machchhar, who is undergoing treatment at a hospital in the UAE, was hailed as a “true hero” by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.