r/worldevents • u/sonicruiser • 2d ago
Hamam Al Hammami, le copilote accusé de l'attaque du vol flydubai, est passé par la Royal Air Maroc
https://ledesk.ma/2026/10/03/hamam-al-hammami-le-copilote-accuse-de-lattaque-du-vol-flydubai-est-passe-par-la-royal-air-maroc/Article by Moroccan investigative outlet behind a paywall, translated French to English
The Desk was able to identify the Omani co-pilot suspected of trying to crash a flydubai plane. He previously presented himself as a senior pilot officer for Royal Air Maroc. The national airline claims that he only completed three months or theoretical training there, without ever flying. Exclusive details
On September 30, flydubai flight FZ1073, which left Dubai for Tel Aviv, was urgently diverted to Tabouk, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, after an attack in the cockpit. According to Israeli passengers and officials, the co-pilot stabbed the captain. Indian Smit Machchhar then tried to throw the plane to the ground. a plane lost approximately 17.400 feet in less than two minutes. Passengers overpowered him, and two reserve pilots on board regained control. No passengers were injured. The suspect, an Omani national, was arrested and then transferred from Saudi Arabia to the United Arab Emirates, where he is under investigation for terrorism.
The Desk was able to trace his identity on the basis of consistent sources: he is Hamam Alhamami, of Omani nationality. The desk was also able to view and authenticate his since-deleted Linkedin profile. His journey agrees point by point with what the international press reports about the suspect. Based in Muscat, he presented himself as co-pilot on a Boeing 737. He claims 7 years at Oman Air from February 2018 to February 2025, including three as co-pilot from January 2022. Another line in this profile has not yet been documented.
EIGHT MONTHS IN CASABLANCA, ACCORDING TO HIS LINKEDIN
Between June 2025 and January 2026, Hamam Al Hammami declares having held the position of Senior First Officer, that is to say experienced co-pilot, at Royal Air Maroc. According to his LinkedIn profile, this would be a full-time, face-to-face job attached to the Casablanca base, for a period of eight months. This passage therefore ended less than a year ago.
The timeline fits with that of his hiring in Dubai. An Israeli official told CNN that the suspect had only been with flydubai for eight months. Daily Israel Hayom talk about nine months. His arrival in the Emirati company would before date back to the beginning of 2026, just after his departure from RAM.
THREE MONTHS OF TRAINING SPECIFIES THE RAM
Questioned by The Desk, an authorized source from Royal Air Maroc categorically reframes this passage. According to the company, Hamam Al Hammami spent only three months there from September 22, 2025 to January 4, 2026, as part of theoretical training under the aegis of instructors, due to " its hour deficit ". He has never been at the controls of a RAM aircraft and has had no responsibility towards passengers, she assures. His departure could be explained by flydubai's more attractive offering due to the Emirates' proximity to his country of origin.
This version contradicts that of the professional profile of the pilot, who displays eight months of presence and an experienced co-pilot title. The title of a position on Linkedln remains a statement of its holder and does not prove that he stole.
A PILOT ALREADY DISMISSED IN MUSCAT
The question of recruitment arises all the more acutely since the pilot was, according to several American media, already reported before his arrival in Morocco. According to the Wall Street Journal, Omani authorities had banned him from flying, fearing that he had adopted radical ideological views. According to ABC News, Oman Air identified him in 2024 as a security risk while he was training as a co-pilot, after the discovery of extremist content. The company then allegedly kept him in an administrative position. This version is compatible with the presence of Oman Air on its profile until February 2025. A Fox News source suggests, on the contrary that he would have settled in Dubai in 2024, which is contradicted by the chronology of his profile.
The Wall Street Journal could not determine whether Muscat had shared its concerns with other countries or companies. In any case, RAM claims that it did not have this information at the time of welcoming him, just a few months after his sidelining in Oman. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister, says the suspect followed a " radical Islamist indoctrination ". The Emirati authorities refuse to make any comments so as not to prejudge the investigation which established that he had extremist materials.
MAXIMUM SECURITY AND LOCKED COCKPITS
According to information from Desk, Royal Air Maroc had enlisted Al Hammami via a specialized agency as part of its support needs its development plan whose pace should reach around fifteen additional devices per year. In this sense, the Royal Air School of Marrakech provides cohorts of around a hundred candidates per year, RAM adds the same number for a transitional period, most of them from international sources.
The national company claims precautionary and safety criteria and rules on board and on the ground among the strictest in the sector "to say that a flydubai type incident is" formally unimaginable "on board his fleet. According to our sources, RAM has also implemented new safety procedures in its cockpits, presented internally as a response to a new form of threat ". The current composition of its technical crews, where foreign pilots are the majority, would be discussed in this context. However, no link has been established between this composition and the case of the suspect, who is of Omani nationality.
Hamam Al Hammami has not, at this stage, been the subject of any public charges, and he remains presumed innocent. Flydubai, which did not wish to comment while the investigation is ongoing, has suspended its flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv.