Key facts
- Australian police are investigating flydubai co-pilot Hammam al-Hammami's links to Australia.
- Al-Hammami studied in Australia from 2015 to 2017.
- The UAE prosecutor general called the incident a "terrorist attack" involving a crash axe.
- The co-pilot's student visa was canceled in 2019.
- The aircraft plunged 16,625 feet in 30 seconds before control was regained.
Australian police confirmed on Sunday that authorities are investigating the "links to Australia" of a flydubai co-pilot who attacked the captain on a flight to Tel Aviv. The co-pilot, identified as Omani national Hammam al-Hammami, reportedly studied at a university in Melbourne, Victoria, between 2015 and 2017.
The UAE prosecutor general stated on Saturday that al-Hammami used an emergency crash axe to attack the pilot on flydubai flight 1073, which was en route from Dubai to Israel, calling the incident a "terrorist attack." The aircraft plunged significantly before passengers and crew regained control. The co-pilot's student visa was canceled in 2019 after he was no longer enrolled in a course.
The Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team, comprising the Australian Federal Police, Victoria Police, and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), is investigating the man's links to Australia. The Financial Times reported that al-Hammami allegedly visited radical mosques and extremist websites while in Australia, citing two people familiar with the investigation, though Reuters could not immediately verify this report.