Australian security agencies are investigating the flydubai co-pilot’s links to the country after an alleged attempt to take control of an Israel-bound flight, The Guardian reported on October 4, 2026. The Australian Federal Police said the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team, which includes the AFP, Victoria Police and ASIO, is conducting the inquiry.
An AFP spokesperson said the team was investigating the man’s links to Australia and would provide an update “at an appropriate time.” The source report does not describe any findings or outcome of the inquiry.
A source familiar with the case, whom The Guardian said was not authorised to speak publicly, said the man received an Australian student visa in 2014, arrived the following year to begin a university course and left Australia in 2017. The source said authorities cancelled his visa in 2019 after confirming he was no longer enrolled. The Guardian said it had not verified which Australian university he attended.
US media outlets, including CNN, reported that a now-deleted LinkedIn profile said he had studied engineering at an Australian university. Separately, Buckinghamshire New University said a student named Hamam al-Hammami had completed a distance-learning course in aviation management there and had not undertaken pilot training at the university. The report says numerous media outlets identified the co-pilot as Hammam al-Hammami, an Omani national.
The Guardian reported that the UAE is leading the investigation into the alleged cockpit attack. The co-pilot and the flight’s Indian captain, Smit Machchhar, were taken to the UAE, and officials said several countries, including Israel, were participating. Flydubai said the circumstances remained under investigation and that it could not comment further.
The reported attack involved a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv with 182 people on board. The Guardian said passengers and crew intervened after the co-pilot allegedly tried to take control of the aircraft. It reported that the UAE prosecutor general said a crash axe was used and that the pilot was stabbed. The report also said the aircraft descended 16,625 feet (5,067 metres) in just over 30 seconds.
The airline’s flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv had been suspended until further notice, the report said. The Wall Street Journal separately reported that Oman had barred the co-pilot from flying over concerns he had adopted extremist views, moved him to an administrative job at Oman Air and that he was later hired by flydubai. That account has not been independently established in the supplied reporting.
Source: The Guardian.
