Australia probes flydubai co-pilot’s links to the country, police say

A multi-agency Australian counterterrorism unit is probing the potential links of the co-pilot of flydubai flight FZ1073 to Australia, following the incident where he stabbed his captain and attempted to hijack the plane. The investigation is being conducted by the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team, comprising federal police, Victorian state police, and the ASIO intelligence agency.

The co-pilot, an Omani national named Hamam Al-Hammami, studied at RMIT University in Melbourne, according to two sources familiar with the investigation. RMIT confirmed that the co-pilot was enrolled at the university but did not specify when or successfully complete an engineering qualification. The flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv suffered a 16,000 feet drop in 30 seconds before being safely landed in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia by a reserve pilot.

Israeli officials described the incident as a terrorist attack, while the UAE public prosecutor has not officially charged the co-pilot. Most passengers on board were Israeli nationals, and the plane landed safely after passengers and crew subdued the co-pilot. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu indicated that the co-pilot had reportedly undergone radical Islamist indoctrination, leading to a review of security aspects of foreign civil aviation in Israel.