Prosecutors in the United Arab Emirates say the co-pilot who tried to take control of a Flydubai flight last month intended to crash it at Tel Aviv’s airport. The plane, with 174 people on board, landed safely after he was overpowered. Officials say he has confessed and acted alone.
Authorities in the United Arab Emirates say the co-pilot who tried to seize control of a Flydubai aircraft on September 30 was on a “suicide” mission to crash it at Israel’s Ben Gurion airport, Al Jazeera reported.
Attorney General Hamad Saif al-Shamsi set out the findings on Friday, October 9, in a statement carried by the state news agency WAM. Prosecutors believe the plan “drew inspiration from the 9/11 attack”.
What Prosecutors Allege
- The suspect is 29 years old
- He had used two earlier flights to Tel Aviv to “familiarise himself with the flight route and the airport”
- He joined Flydubai in January, after working for several airlines in different countries
- He said he prepared by viewing material promoting “terrorism” and taking boxing lessons
- Signs of his “drift towards extremism” first emerged in 2017, while he was studying in Australia
The statement said he “admitted that he had acted alone, without the involvement of others” and gave a detailed confession in the presence of his lawyer.
UAE officials have not named him. These are the prosecution’s allegations, and no trial has been reported.
No Warning Signs in Recruitment
Investigators examined Flydubai’s hiring procedures and found that the suspect had met all professional and security requirements, including holding a pilot’s licence and a certificate of good conduct.
“None of the procedures revealed any indications of his extremist views or his intention to carry out a terrorist plot,” the statement said. It did not appear to implicate the airline in any wrongdoing.
What Happened on the Flight
Flight FZ1073 left Dubai for Tel Aviv at 7:05am and climbed to 34,000 feet, according to Flightradar24.
A little more than two hours later it began a steep descent, dropping more than 17,000 feet in about two minutes.
A fight had broken out in the cockpit after the co-pilot stabbed the captain, Smit Machchhar. Passengers and crew reportedly overpowered the co-pilot, and the aircraft levelled out at about 15,000 feet.
Two reserve pilots who were on board took the controls and landed the jet at Tabuk, in north-western Saudi Arabia, at 9:45am local time.
There were 174 people on board. Saudi authorities said both pilots were taken to hospital and later transferred to Abu Dhabi.
Image: A Flydubai Boeing 737 (file photo, 2021; not the aircraft involved). Photo by Md Shaifuzzaman Ayon via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
