News Minimalist

All news ranked by significance

Co-pilot planned to crash flydubai jet into Tel Aviv airport, reports say

bbc.com — October 5, 2026 at 03:01 PM UTC

A co-pilot accused of attempting to hijack a flydubai flight planned to crash the aircraft into Ben Gurion airport or a Tel Aviv tower block, according to US and Israeli reports. The Omani national was described as a "lone wolf" extremist. The co-pilot, named as Hamam al-Hammami, attacked the captain with an emergency crash axe before being overpowered by passengers. He reportedly told investigators he intended to receive landing clearances and crash the Boeing 737 MAX with over 180 people aboard, in the style of the 9/11 attacks. The UAE attorney-general confirmed a "terrorist act" was attempted on flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv. Questions have emerged over security lapses, including how the co-pilot was hired despite being barred by Oman Air over extremist concerns, and why Israeli regulations on pilots from non-diplomatic nations were not enforced.

With a significance score of 2.2, this news ranks in the top 22% of today's 32754 analyzed articles.

Get summaries of news with significance over 5.5 (usually ~10 stories per week). Read by 10,000+ subscribers:

Most significant articles on this story:

[4.8]

Trump Blames Iran for Flydubai Hijacking Attempt; Houthis Strike Saudi Arabia (tg24.sky.it)

16h

Link Source (Italian)

[3.9]

Israeli jets prepared to down FlyDubai plane after co-pilot attack (lrytas.lt)

2h

Link Source (Portuguese)

[3.6]

FlyDubai co-pilot planned to crash plane into Israel's Ben Gurion airport, officials say (irishtimes.com)

1d 15h

[3.5]

Israel Prepared to Down Flydubai Jet After Hijack Signal, Report Says (ndtv.com)

18h

[3.5]

Rogue pilot threat exposes aviation security gaps after flydubai incident (smh.com.au)

21h

Link Source [$]

[3.5]

Israeli agencies probe Omani pilot's Iran links after hijack attempt (jpost.com)

16h

[3.5]

Aircraft Incidents That Forced Aviation Safety Reforms Since 9/11 (usnews.com)

10h

[3.4]

Flydubai payments to Israeli aviation security chief exposed as Trump blames Iran (ynetnews.com)

22h

[3.4]

FlyDubai co-pilot planned Tel Aviv attack before hiring, Israeli officials say (cbc.ca)

1d 9h

[3.4]

FlyDubai co-pilot planned to crash plane into Ben-Gurion airport (fr.euronews.com)

1d 6h

Link Source (French)

[3.3]

Netanyahu orders security review of foreign airlines after Flydubai incident (nv.ua)

1d 19h

Link Source (Ukrainian)

[3.3]

Flydubai co-pilot reveals intended crash site in UAE interrogation (hotnews.ro)

1d 9h

Link Source (Romanian)

[3.2]

Flydubai pilot confessed to planning Ben Gurion attack, official says (nbcnews.com)

11h

[3.2]

Netanyahu orders security review of flights to Israel after flydubai attack (khaleejtimes.com)

1d 16h

[3.2]

US Officials Split on Iran's Role in Flydubai Incident (masrawy.com)

24h

Link Source (Arabic)

[3.2]

Flydubai copilot allegedly planned to crash plane into Ben Gurion Airport (srf.ch)

21h

Link Source (German)

[3.2]

Flydubai hijack suspect's training in UK, New Zealand, Australia under scrutiny (jpost.com)

1h

[3.2]

Israeli Aviation Security Chief Took Flydubai Payments; Trump Insists Iran Behind Attack (ynet.co.il)

1d 3h

Link Source (undefined)

[3.2]

Shin Bet joins UAE interrogation of flydubai hijacker (jpost.com)

1d 5h

[3.1]

Disobedience saves 180 lives on FlyDubai flight FZ1073 (abc.net.au)

12h

[3.1]

Omani co-pilot planned attack on flydubai flight to Israel before joining airline (haaretz.com)

1d 7h

[3.1]

Israel prepared to shoot down hijacked flydubai jet to prevent crash (jpost.com)

15h

[3.1]

Israel had Omani co-pilot's data before Flydubai cockpit attack, yet no alert was raised (english.mathrubhumi.com)

1d 21h

[3.0]

Trump says Iran behind Flydubai attack, investigators unconvinced (usatoday.com)

1d 2h

[3.0]

Omani Co-Pilot Tells Investigators He Wanted to Avenge Gaza in Flydubai Incident (blick.ch)

1d 3h

Link Source (German)

[3.0]

Israel opposition demands transport minister resign over Flydubai attack failures (firstpost.com)

1d 14h

[3.0]

FlyDubai Co-Pilot Tried to Crash Plane into Israeli Airport, Captain Disarmed Him (de.euronews.com)

1d 15h

Link Source (German)

[3.0]

Flydubai axe attack: aircraft 30 seconds from crash in dive, relief crew praised as heroes (nzherald.co.nz)

3h

[3.0]

Israel Prepared to Shoot Down Hijacked Plane With 150 Citizens Aboard (nettavisen.no)

20h

Link Source (Swedish)

[3.0]

Trump Blames Iran for Flydubai Attack Plot on Tel Aviv Flight (n-tv.de)

20h

Link Source (German)

[3.0]

Flydubai attack plot exposed gaps in Oman, UAE, and Israeli security checks (ynetnews.com)

1d 16h

[3.0]

Omani pilot admits to attempted hijacking in revenge for Gaza (ansa.it)

16h

Link Source (Italian)

[3.0]

Israel Prepared to Shoot Down Flydubai Flight After Cockpit Axe Attack (news18.com)

19h

[3.0]

US intelligence finds no conclusive Iran link in Flydubai attack; Trump blames Tehran (moneycontrol.com)

20h

[2.9]

Israeli Security Agencies Warned of Flight Threats; Transport Ministry Ignored Warnings (ndtv.com)

1d 20h

[2.9]

Flydubai co-pilot planned attack before airline hired him, Israeli officials say (usnews.com)

1d 16h

[2.9]

Israel Prepared to Shoot Down Flydubai Flight Carrying Its Own Citizens (gujarati.news18.com)

18h

Link Source (Gujarati)

[2.9]

Trump and Vance split on Iran's role in flydubai axe attack (deccanherald.com)

17h

[2.9]

New Zealand-trained co-pilot in Dubai flight attack may have targeted Israel's Ben Gurion Airport (worldjournal.com)

8h

Link Source (Chinese)

[2.8]

Trump says Iran behind flydubai attack; Vance cites lack of proof (economictimes.indiatimes.com)

21h

[2.8]

Trump Says Iran Behind Flydubai Attack Despite No Evidence (saharareporters.com)

8h

[2.8]

Flydubai co-pilot allegedly tried to crash plane into Ben Gurion Airport (web.de)

19h

Link Source (German)

[2.8]

Omani co-pilot admits trying to crash flydubai flight in 'revenge for Gaza' (hindustantimes.com)

16h

[2.8]

Investigators believe Flydubai co-pilot acted alone in attack on Israel-bound flight (independent.co.uk)

1d 17h

[2.8]

Flydubai co-pilot attacks captain in midair terror attempt (dn.se)

5h

Link Source (Swedish)

[2.8]

FlyDubai Co-Pilot Planned to Crash Jet into Ben-Gurion Airport; Captain Hailed as Hero (www1.cbn.com)

1d 13h

[2.8]

Flydubai co-pilot tried to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport (welt.de)

1d 1h

Link Source (German)

[2.8]

Boeing 737 MAX plunges 5,000 meters after copilot attack; passengers and off-duty pilots save flight (oglobo.globo.com)

16h

Link Source (Portuguese)

[2.8]

UAE interrogators question flydubai co-pilot over alleged plot to crash Tel Aviv flight (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

17h

[2.8]

JD Vance questions flydubai hiring of co-pilot flagged by Omani authorities (indiatoday.in)

1d 1h

[2.8]

Aircraft incidents that reshaped aviation security rules since 9/11 (al-monitor.com)

10h

[2.7]

Israel was ready to shoot down Flydubai jet after cockpit attack (tamil.oneindia.com)

19h

Link Source (Tamil)

[2.7]

Flydubai co-pilot planned attack for months, targeted Tel Aviv route (rtl.be)

1d 11h

Link Source (French)

[2.7]

Trump and Vance split on Iran's role in flydubai stabbing (hindustantimes.com)

1d 1h

[2.7]

Israel readied to down flydubai jet after cockpit attack (hindustantimes.com)

15h

[2.7]

Flydubai copilot subdued after plotting to crash plane into Israeli airport (bbc.com)

1d 7h

Link Source (French)

[2.6]

Flydubai co-pilot planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport, Israeli sources say (nos.nl)

1d 4h

Link Source (Dutch)

[2.6]

Flydubai co-pilot planned to crash Tel Aviv flight, reports say (bbc.com)

18h

Link Source (undefined)

[2.6]

Flydubai copilot planned Israel airport attack, authorities say (noticiasaominuto.com)

8h

Link Source (Portuguese)

[2.6]

Flydubai pilot confesses to plotting Tel Aviv airport crash (nur.kz)

1d 23h

Link Source (Russian)

[2.6]

Flydubai jet's engines failed in 16,000-foot dive, had to be restarted, ex-US pilot says (news18.com)

18h

[2.6]

Omani copilot planned attack before joining airline, planned to crash plane into Ben-Gurion Airport (noticias.r7.com)

21h

Link Source (Portuguese)

[2.6]

Co-pilot planned flydubai attack before airline hired him, Israeli officials say (smh.com.au)

1d 16h

Link Source [$]

[2.6]

US House honors Indian pilot Smit Machchhar for foiling Flydubai attack (firstpost.com)

5h

[2.6]

UAE and Israel seek closer ties after flydubai attack, echoing US-Saudi post-9/11 cooperation (jpost.com)

1d 13h

[2.6]

Omani co-pilot tried to hijack Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv, citing Gaza revenge (corriere.it)

1d 4h

Link Source (Italian)

[2.6]

flydubai security lapses across Oman, UAE, and Israel enabled cockpit attack near Tel Aviv (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

1d 18h

[2.6]

Omani pilot plotted to crash Flydubai plane into Tel Aviv airport (ct24.ceskatelevize.cz)

1d 5h

Link Source (Czech)

[2.6]

Omani co-pilot planned to crash flydubai jet into Ben Gurion Airport (hindustantimes.com)

1d 19h

[2.6]

IAF reservists describe response to flydubai hijacking scare (jpost.com)

1d 8h

[2.5]

Heroic passengers and pilot thwart terror attack on Dubai-Tel Aviv flight (arvamus.postimees.ee)

14h

Link Source (Malay)

[2.5]

Al-Qaida Supporters Hail Foiled Flydubai Attack as Crew Actions Raise Questions (welt.de)

1d 14h

Link Source (German)

[2.5]

Flydubai co-pilot says Gaza war motivated plane attack (malayalam.news18.com)

15h

Link Source (Malayalam)

[2.5]

Omani co-pilot faces possible death penalty in UAE over alleged plane crash plot (malayalam.oneindia.com)

1d 6h

Link Source (Malayalam)

[2.5]

Flydubai co-pilot planned crash before airline job, say Israeli officials (business-standard.com)

1d 14h

[2.5]

Flydubai co-pilot told investigators he attacked captain over Gaza war (firstpost.com)

17h

[2.5]

Flydubai copilot planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport, sources say (nos.nl)

1d 1h

Link Source (Dutch)

[2.4]

Israeli probe: Flydubai co-pilot likely acted alone, no terror link found (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

1d 20h

[2.4]

Flydubai hijacker likely targeted Ben Gurion Airport, sources say (cnn.com)

1d 6h

[2.4]

Flydubai co-pilot planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport, reports say (bbc.co.uk)

1d 10h

[2.4]

US House honors Indian pilot for stopping cockpit attack on Dubai-Tel Aviv flight (khaleejtimes.com)

7h

[2.4]

Flydubai co-pilot confesses to plot to crash plane into Israel's Ben Gurion Airport (vnexpress.net)

1d 22h

Link Source (Vietnamese)

[2.4]

Omani co-pilot tried to crash Flydubai flight into Tel Aviv building (malayalam.news18.com)

1d 22h

Link Source (Malayalam)

[2.4]

Flydubai co-pilot planned to kill captain and crash plane into Tel Aviv tower, report says (firstpost.com)

1d 22h

[2.4]

Flydubai co-pilot confesses to plot to crash plane into Ben Gurion Airport (blick.ch)

1d 20h

Link Source (German)

[2.4]

Passengers overpower copilot after attack on Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv (n-tv.de)

1d 19h

Link Source (German)

[2.4]

Flydubai co-pilot who attacked captain had been fired from Oman Air over extremism (japantimes.co.jp)

1d 23h

[2.4]

Flydubai co-pilot postponed planned July hijacking, investigators say (theguardian.com)

1d 5h

[2.3]

Oman Co-Pilot Admits Plotting Dubai-Tel Aviv Hijack for Gaza (tamil.oneindia.com)

10h

Link Source (Tamil)

[2.3]

Omani pilot admits trying to hijack Flydubai flight to avenge Gaza (ilmessaggero.it)

19h

Link Source (Italian)

[2.3]

Israel Scrambled Jets as FlyDubai Crew Subdued Attacking Co-Pilot (news18.com)

1d 5h

[2.2]

Trump blames Iran for flydubai incident; Vance cites lack of conclusive proof (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

18h

[2.2]

Flydubai copilot faces death penalty after passengers stop Ben-Gurion Airport crash plot (welt.de)

1d 12h

Link Source (German)

[2.2]

Co-pilot planned to crash flydubai jet into Tel Aviv airport, reports say (bbc.com)

1d 9h

[2.2]

Copilot accused of hijacking Flydubai flight plotted Tel Aviv attack (noticias.uol.com.br)

1d 22h

Link Source (Portuguese)

[2.1]

Israel confirms hijacker planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport (telegraph.co.uk)

1d 2h

Link Source [$]

[2.1]

Omani co-pilot planned to crash flydubai jet into Ben Gurion Airport (thestar.com.my)

1d 14h

[2.1]

Flydubai co-pilot accused of axe attack trained in New Zealand for 175 days (nzherald.co.nz)

20h

[2.1]

New Zealand police investigate flydubai hijacker's time in the country (jpost.com)

1d 12h

[2.1]

Oman barred Flydubai co-pilot over extremist website interest, cites background check gaps (firstpost.com)

1d 11h

[2.1]

flydubai copilot admits plan to crash plane into Israeli airport (rbc.ua)

1d 14h

Link Source (Ukrainian)

[2.1]

Flydubai Co-Pilot's Plot to Crash Plane into Tel Aviv Revealed (tamil.news18.com)

1d 22h

Link Source (Tamil)

[2.1]

Flydubai Co-Pilot's Dual Citizenship Raises Aviation Screening Gaps, Omani Sources Say (news18.com)

1d 13h

[2.1]

Passengers Subdue Attacking Pilot on Flydubai Flight to Tel Aviv (tt.com)

1d 20h

Link Source (German)

[2.1]

Flydubai Co-Pilot Accused of Stabbing Captain Trained in New Zealand (usnews.com)

18h

[2.1]

Omani co-pilot's 9/11-style plot foiled; Indian captain regains control after midair attack (tamil.oneindia.com)

1d 21h

Link Source (Tamil)

[2.1]

flydubai copilot planned to crash plane into Israel's Ben-Gurion Airport (rbc.ua)

1d 11h

Link Source (Russian)

[2.1]

Omani co-pilot admits hijacking Flydubai flight to avenge Gaza (tg24.sky.it)

1d 4h

Link Source (Italian)

[2.0]

Omani co-pilot admits plotting to crash flydubai plane into Tel Aviv skyscraper (firstpost.com)

1d 20h

[2.0]

New Zealand police confirm Flydubai co-pilot trained in the country before stabbing (shorouknews.com)

17h

Link Source (Arabic)

[2.0]

Omani Co-Pilot Arrested for Alleged Plot to Crash Flydubai Flight into Ben Gurion Airport (news18.com)

1d 19h

[2.0]

Captain Smit Machchhar: How a stabbed pilot stopped an attack on flight FZ1073 (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

1d 17h

[2.0]

UAE Seeks Death Penalty for Flydubai Co-Pilot in Cockpit Attack (news18.com)

1d 19h

[2.0]

Flydubai co-pilot aimed to crash plane into Ben Gurion Airport, officials say (nationalpost.com)

1d 2h

[2.0]

Flydubai co-pilot admits planning Tel Aviv skyscraper or Ben-Gurion Airport attack (nv.ua)

1d 14h

Link Source (Ukrainian)

[1.9]

1,200 crew from hostile nations entered Israel this year (israelnationalnews.com)

5h

[1.9]

Russia Condemns Terrorist Attack on Flydubai Flight by Co-Pilot (fontanka.ru)

16h

Link Source (Russian)

[1.9]

FlyDubai co-pilot accused of ax attack failed RMIT engineering course (business-standard.com)

1d 16h

[1.9]

JD Vance Questions How Grounded FlyDubai Co-Pilot Regained Cockpit Access (news18.com)

1d 4h

[1.9]

Omani co-pilot says he tried to hijack FlyDubai flight to die as martyr for Gaza (ilfattoquotidiano.it)

1d 1h

Link Source (Italian)

[1.9]

US House bill honors Indian pilot Smit Machchhar for stopping flydubai terror attack (zeenews.india.com)

6h

[1.8]

Omani co-pilot targeted flydubai flight to crash in Israel (zeenews.india.com)

1d 18h

[1.8]

Israel Had Omani Co-Pilot's Details Before Flydubai Attack, Yet He Was Cleared (zeenews.india.com)

1d 20h

[1.8]

Indian pilot Smit Machchhar recovers after attack on Dubai-Tel Aviv flight (economictimes.indiatimes.com)

7h

[1.8]

Flydubai co-pilot planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport terminal (korrespondent.net)

1d 19h

Link Source (Russian)

[1.8]

Flydubai FZ1073: How crew and passengers foiled cockpit attack (khaleejtimes.com)

1d 20h

[1.8]

US House resolution honors Indian pilot Smit Machchhar, condemns attack as terrorism (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

6h

[1.8]

Flydubai passengers feared hijack would divert flight to Iran or Yemen (jpost.com)

1d 8h

[1.8]

Oman Sources Reveal flydubai Co-Pilot Was Barred Over Extremist Links (ndtv.com)

1d 9h

[1.7]

UAE sent Flydubai crew list to Israel before Omani co-pilot's attack (firstpost.com)

1d 21h

[1.7]

Dentist recounts 40-minute fight to save flydubai captain after cockpit attack (gulfnews.com)

16h

[1.7]

Flydubai co-pilot suspected of planning to crash plane into Israeli airport (express.co.uk)

1d 13h

[1.6]

Flydubai cockpit fight forces emergency landing on Dubai-Tel Aviv flight (derstandard.at)

1d 17h

Link Source (German)

[1.3]

Indian Embassy: flydubai pilot Captain Smit Machchhar recovering after attack (gulfnews.com)

8h

[1.3]

Flydubai pilot survives axe attack by co-pilot, undergoes skull surgery (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

2h

[1.1]

Flydubai pilot Smit Machchhar critical after skull fracture, emergency surgery (malayalam.oneindia.com)

8h

Link Source (Malayalam)

[1.1]

Indian embassy: flydubai pilot Smit Machchhar recovering after attack (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

5h