Israel confirms hijacker planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport

Israel confirmed that an Omani pilot accused of attempting to hijack a Flydubai plane planned to crash it into Ben Gurion airport, the country's busiest international airport, according to its top security official. National security adviser Eytan Ben-David said the pilot, Hamam al-Hammami, had mapped out the attack for months, possibly aborting an earlier attempt in July when an acquaintance was on the crew. The September 30 incident occurred during the Sukkot festival, with 2.5 million travelers expected that month. Hammami, 29, joined Flydubai in February after being rejected by Royal Air Maroc and grounded by Oman Air in 2024 over extremist material concerns. Ben-David called the case "a disaster," saying the pilot was likely a lone actor, not Iranian-directed, and that security procedures for vetting crew lists had failed.