UAE Reveals Co-Pilot Used Emergency Axe in Attempt to Seize FlyDubai Aircraft
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The United Arab Emirates has revealed that the co-pilot accused of assaulting the captain of a FlyDubai flight bound for Israel used an emergency axe kept on board in an attempt to seize control of the aircraft. Hamad Saif Al Shamsi, the UAE's Attorney General, said the co-pilot began his actions during flight FZ1073, which was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday, September 30, using the axe to attack the captain inside the cockpit and attempting to take over the aircraft's control systems. The information indicates that the perpetrator may not have needed to smuggle a weapon on board, since commercial passenger aircraft carry emergency axes for use in emergencies, and UAE aviation regulations require such an axe to be kept on board. Al Shamsi said authorities are still investigating the incident and the perpetrator's motives, as well as possible connections, and are examining both physical and digital evidence. Earlier, the Wall Street Journal reported that the co-pilot was Hamam Al-Hammami, an Omani national who had previously been barred by Omani authorities from flying due to concerns that he might hold extremist views, and that the captain was injured during the attack. The aircraft nearly crashed before passengers and crew helped subdue Al-Hammami, after which the flight made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. UAE authorities are investigating the incident, which officials have described as a terrorist act, while FlyDubai has suspended flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv following the incident, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and an advisor to the UAE president both described the incident as a terrorist act.