Stories
Flydubai Co-Pilot Identified: Terrorist Images Found on Social Media
F
Firstpost•03-10-2026, 07:20
Flydubai Co-Pilot Identified: Terrorist Images Found on Social Media
- •Omani co-pilot Hamam Al Hamami, who attacked Indian Captain Smit Machchhar and attempted to crash a Flydubai aircraft, was previously removed from Oman’s national airline due to ‘radical views’.
- •Al Hamami's LinkedIn profile, since deleted, showed he worked at Oman Air and Royal Air Maroc, but made no mention of his time at Flydubai, where he worked for eight months.
- •Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated the suspect is believed to have undergone ‘Islamist radical indoctrination’.
- •Al Hamami's LinkedIn and Instagram posts, made shortly after the incident, included videos filmed in cockpits showing Israeli airline planes, and ended with photos of al-Qaeda leaders Ayman al-Zawahiri and Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi.
- •Another post featured an AI-generated image of Islam’s holiest sites with a defiant poem, raising concerns about background checks in aviation hiring as UAE and Israeli authorities investigate his online activities.
Key Questions Answered
The Omani co-pilot has been identified as Hamam Al Hamami, also spelled Hamam al-Hammami, who previously worked for airlines like Oman Air and Royal Air Maroc before joining Flydubai for eight months.
His LinkedIn and Instagram accounts featured cockpit videos ending with photos of al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and 2009 suicide bomber Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, alongside an AI-generated image of holy sites and a defiant poem.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, he was removed from his previous job at Oman's national airline due to growing concerns regarding his radical views.
