Flydubai Co-Pilot Had Planned Ben Gurion Airport Attack: Israeli Media

In Short

Israeli media reports claim a Flydubai co-pilot allegedly planned a terror attack targeting Ben Gurion Airport after killing the captain. Investigations are ongoing into the security lapses and the alleged plot, which was reportedly foiled by the pilot's actions.

Flydubai Co-Pilot Had Planned Ben Gurion Airport Attack: Israeli Media
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Flydubai Co-Pilot Had Planned Ben Gurion Airport Attack: Israeli Media

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As the investigation into the FlyDubai incident is in progress, more and more questions are being raised over the security lapses that could have resulted in a major catastrophe if the flight had crashed. According to reports, the authorities in the United Arab Emirates had shared a list of passengers and crew ahead of the FlyDubai flight with Israel.

It may be recalled that the officials have already said the Omani co-pilot was barred from flying by his own country because of concerns about his extremist views. According to agency reports, officials on condition of anonymity said Israel hadn't raised red flags on any passenger or member of the crew. The officials said they were not authorized to speak to reporters about the probe.

It is still not known how the attacker escaped security checks and succeeded in carrying a crash axe and tried to take control of the plummeting plane in a “terrorist attack” on Wednesday into the cockpit.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later told the head of the National Security Council to appoint an examiner to review “all security aspects regarding foreign civil aviation to Israel.”

Israeli media further said that the co-pilot had planned to deliberately crash the aircraft into a building or another plane at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport.

Inputs from agency reports claim that the co-pilot Hamam Al-Hammami, who is currently under arrest, reportedly told investigators in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that he intended to continue operating flydubai Flight 1073 normally after killing the aircraft's captain, Indian pilot Smit Machchhar and then crash the aircraft into a building or another jet at the airport in an attack resembling the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Quoting sources, Ynet reported that Al-Hammami told investigators that he intended to initiate the plan while the aircraft was over Jordan and approaching Israel. By waiting until the final stage of the flight, he believed that he would prevent anyone from understanding what was happening in time to alert authorities or stop him from carrying out the plan.

The reports further said that Al-Hammami had also told investigators that if he was unable to crash the aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport, he planned to target a skyscraper in Tel Aviv or one of the US military bases in Jordan. But Captain Smit Machchhar's courage and valour thwarted his plans: despite being grievously injured, he sent distress signals and opened the cockpit door, enabling crew members and passengers to intervene and neutralise Al-Hamami.

Interestingly, this issue has taken a political colour in Israel ahead of the upcoming elections there; the opposition is highlighting the security failures on the part of Netanyahu and his supporters. Transportation Minister Regev is a member of Netanyahu's Likud party and a staunch supporter.

“This is exactly what system collapse looks like,” Yair Golan, head of the opposition Democrats party, wrote on X. “A transportation minister who completely abandons our skies, and a prime minister who abandons national security.”

A Journey of Three Decades Time passes faster than we realise. What feels like a journey that began only yesterday has today grown into more than three decades of a meaningful and fulfilling life devoted to education, journalism, and the empowerment of young minds. My professional journey began with journalism training in New Delhi in 1979. I went on to work as an independent journalist, drawing on my fluency in both English and Telugu. Over the years, I have edited and worked on Telugu articles in both languages, an experience that strengthened my command of language and sharpened my understanding of society, people, and contemporary issues. Yet, my principal profession and enduring passion have always been teaching. My decision to become a teacher was not merely a career choice—it was a calling. Teaching offered me the rare privilege of inspiring young minds, guiding them through their formative years, and making a lasting difference in their lives. I found immense satisfaction in simplifying complex concepts, nurturing curiosity, encouraging independent thought, and building confidence among students. Every moment in the classroom—every question, every moment of discovery, and every spark of understanding—reminded me why I had chosen this path: to empower young people through knowledge, values, and essential life skills. My teaching career began at the grassroots level as a Montessori teacher and gradually progressed to the position of Vice Principal. I had the opportunity to work in reputed educational institutions, including Dilsukhnagar Public School in Hyderabad, where I shouldered both teaching and administrative responsibilities. Although I have always considered myself, at heart, a teacher, my administrative experience enabled me to understand and contribute to the education system from a much broader perspective. For my students, I have always tried to be an approachable and dependable presence—someone they could turn to not only for academic support, but also for guidance and emotional encouragement. At the same time, I developed a reputation as a firm disciplinarian who believed that integrity, fairness, responsibility, and discipline were fundamental to education. I was also consistently appreciated for maintaining clear communication with parents and staff and for ensuring that examinations and other academic processes were conducted with transparency, fairness, and efficiency. As my career progressed, however, I began to feel that academic education alone was not enough. This realization led me to work more closely with students following the SSC and CBSE curricula, while consciously bringing life-skills education into my teaching. I came to understand that education becomes truly meaningful when it prepares children not merely to pass examinations, but to face life. Teaching emotional resilience, self-reliance, social awareness, communication, decision-making, and other practical life skills often had a deeper and more lasting impact than academic achievement alone. I saw how these skills could help students navigate challenges with greater confidence, maturity, and responsibility. My academic background provided a strong foundation for this approach. My degree in Psychology from the University of Madras helped me develop a deeper understanding of young people's minds, their emotional needs, and the influence of their family and social environments. My M.A. in Telugu with First Class from Osmania University.

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