The FlyDubai co-pilot behind the hijacking attempt wanted to crash the jet into Ben Gurion Airport and previously flew the sensitive Israel route, according to multiple sources close to the investigation, amid increasingly difficult questions about the circumstances of the narrowly avoided tragedy.
FlyDubai hero captain Smit Machchhar described to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu how the attack started and how he managed to finally open the cockpit door after nearly losing his vision under the co-pilot's repeated blows.
The FlyDubai co-pilot who nearly crashed the Tel-Aviv bound flight is an Omani national named Hamam al-Hammami. He was barred from flying by Oman amid concerns he showed signs of extremist views. The incident threw the already hard-hit regional travel industry into crisis.