Co-pilot on Flydubai flight was banned from flying by Oman for holding extremist views

The co-pilot accused of attacking the captain of a Flydubai flight to Israel had previously been barred from flying in Oman. According to multiple media outlets, Omani authorities suspected him of holding radical ideological views. The co-pilot, identified as Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, was banned from flying in Oman, but was subsequently hired by Flydubai.

The incident occurred on a Dubai-Tel Aviv route, where the co-pilot assaulted the Indian captain, but the captain managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to overpower the attacker and force an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Omani authorities had banned the pilot from flying over concerns he had adopted radical ideological views. CNN reported that the pilot was removed from a job at Oman’s national airline last year over concerns about extremist views. Al Arabiya reported that he had also spent time in Syria, raising concerns he may have been influenced by radical groups there.

Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, Dawn, South China Morning Post, Malay Mail, The Indian Express — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.