The Flydubai pilot accused of attacking another pilot aboard a flight bound for Tel Aviv had previously been removed from a role at Oman’s national airline following concerns about his alleged extremist views, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
The pilot was identified as Omani national Hamam al-Hammami by the sources and an Israeli official. Saudi state media also named al-Hammami in reports about the incident.
One of the sources said al-Hammami was born in the United Arab Emirates to an Omani father and Syrian mother and had spent several years living in the UAE.
A LinkedIn profile bearing his name indicated that he worked for Oman Air for about seven years before leaving in February 2025. He later joined Royal Air Maroc in June 2025 and left the airline in January 2026. The profile did not list Flydubai, but one source confirmed to CNN that it belonged to the pilot involved in the incident. The profile has since been deleted.
The second source, a regional diplomat, said al-Hammami had been removed from flight training at Oman Air because of concerns about his radical views and reassigned to another position within the airline.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later said the suspect was believed to have undergone “Islamist radical indoctrination.”
According to an Israeli official, al-Hammami had worked for Flydubai for only about eight months. Another source confirmed that he had previously worked for Royal Air Maroc.
The revelations have raised questions about aviation recruitment procedures and the effectiveness of background checks for pilots.
Flydubai said it could not comment while investigations into the incident were ongoing.
Social media posts raise further questions
Further scrutiny emerged after two posts appeared on a LinkedIn account bearing al-Hammami’s name several hours after the incident. It remains unclear who uploaded the material or whether the posts had been scheduled beforehand.
One of the posts contained several videos apparently filmed from the cockpit of a Boeing 737 Max aircraft. The aircraft involved in Wednesday’s incident was a Flydubai Boeing 737 Max 8 that was diverted to Saudi Arabia.
One video, which CNN said it geolocated to Dubai International Airport, showed an aircraft belonging to Israeli airline El Al. Other footage featured aircraft operated by El Al and Arkia.
The video ended with images of former al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, who carried out a 2009 suicide bombing that killed nine people, including seven US intelligence personnel.
A second post contained an AI-generated image depicting the three holiest sites in Islam — Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem — connected by a glowing trail. A poem heard in the background referred to rejecting humiliation, not fearing death and defending one’s dignity.
The same videos were also posted on an Instagram account using the same name and photographs before the account was deleted.
CNN’s analysis of a deleted X/Twitter account bearing al-Hammami’s name also found posts discussing religion, marriage and gender relations.
In one post from 2022, he discussed his mother’s difficulty finding a prospective wife who would agree to his conditions that she wear a niqab and stop working after marriage.
“They all refused. Then my mother told them, ‘My son is a pilot,’ and they all suddenly agreed,” the post read.
Other posts criticised mixed-gender workplaces and questioned their impact on women.
“How many respectable, religious girls have been ruined in mixed-gender work environments and manipulated?” another post stated.
CNN said nearly 3,000 deleted posts from 2021 and 2022 were examined using an AI-powered semantic search system.
Investigation into cockpit attack
The incident has also raised questions about how an Omani national was permitted to serve on a flight travelling to Tel Aviv, given that Oman does not recognise Israel.
An Israeli official said several agencies, including Shin Bet, Mossad, the military and the Transportation Ministry, were investigating how al-Hammami became part of the flight crew.
UAE Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said the pilot had attempted to carry out a “terrorist act” by attacking his colleague with a crash axe inside the cockpit and attempting to take control of the aircraft.
The plane was diverted to Saudi Arabia, where the suspect was reportedly interrogated as part of the investigation.
The UAE has jurisdiction over the case because the aircraft is registered there, while UAE law applies to crimes committed aboard its aircraft even when they occur outside the country’s territory, according to state news agency WAM.
Netanyahu also said Israel was involved in the investigation after speaking with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.
“I spoke to the president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, and he agreed that Israel would join the interrogations,” Netanyahu told CNN’s Jim Sciutto.
