UAE says flydubai co-pilot attempted 'terrorist' attack, wielded crash axe in cockpit

The co-pilot of flydubai flight FZ1073 attempted to carry out a “terrorist” attack during the flight, the United Arab Emirates prosecutor general said on Saturday, according to the state news agency WAM.

The co-pilot attacked the pilot inside the cockpit with a crash axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft, Prosecutor General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said. A crash axe is typically kept in the cockpit for use during emergencies such as crashes.

The co-pilot was identified as Hammam al-Hammami, an Omani national, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. UAE authorities did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation of his identity.

Al Shamsi’s comments were the first by Emirati authorities to describe the incident as an attempted “terrorist” attack. Investigations are ongoing to determine the circumstances of the incident, the motives and any related connections, as well as to examine physical and digital evidence, he said.

Disaster was averted on Wednesday after passengers and crew subdued the co-pilot, who had attacked the captain in what Israeli officials said was an apparent attempt to crash the plane carrying more than 170 passengers and crew. A reserve flydubai pilot travelling on the flight took control of the aircraft and landed it at Tabuk airport in northwestern Saudi Arabia, where the co-pilot was detained by Saudi authorities.

Flydubai said the circumstances surrounding the incident were still under investigation and that it was not in a position to comment further, a spokesperson said.

An Israeli government official told Reuters earlier that Israeli investigators would take part alongside Emirati authorities in the UAE-led investigation, which would examine what happened as well as the suspect’s motives and background.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that Israel was looking into whether the co-pilot had acted under anyone’s direction, warning that anyone involved would pay a “heavy price”. Netanyahu said on Thursday that the co-pilot, whom he identified as an Omani national, had undergone radical Islamist indoctrination and appeared suicidal, though he said a motive had not yet been established. Most of the passengers on board were Israeli nationals.

The aircraft dropped about 16,625 feet in just over 30 seconds while flying over Saudi Arabia on its journey from the UAE to Israel, according to flight-tracking data from Flightradar24.