How was Omani co-pilot assigned to Israel-bound flight?
What's the story
The attempted hijacking of flydubai Flight FZ1073 on September 30 has raised serious concerns about security lapses in Israeli aviation. The flight, which was headed to Tel Aviv from Dubai, had mostly Israeli passengers onboard. The Omani co-pilot, Hamam al-Hammami, allegedly stabbed Indian captain Smit Machchhar and tried to crash the plane. Typically, Israel does not allow pilots from countries that do not recognize it to operate flights in its airspace. However, the Omani co-pilot had no second nationality.
Nationality concerns
Questions raised over pilot assignment
This has raised questions about how he was assigned to the flight and if Israeli authorities overlooked rules against such assignments.
Al-Hammami had been barred from flying in Oman due to concerns about his ideological views.
However, it is unclear if Oman informed other countries or airlines about this ban. The exact nature of his radicalization also remains unknown.
The incident has triggered investigations by Israeli, Emirati, and Saudi authorities focused on how al-Hammami was cleared to operate the flight.
Operational review
Flydubai's operations under scrutiny
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged a loophole in screening pilots in advance.
The incident has also put flydubai's operations in Israel under scrutiny.
An Israeli transportation ministry source claimed that flydubai's agreement with Israel required pilots to be nationals of countries that recognized Israel.
However, The Jerusalem Post reported that the bilateral aviation agreement between Israel and the UAE did not have such a requirement.
Oversight review
Responsibility yet to be determined
The Times of Israel reported that dozens of Omani pilots have operated flights to Tel Aviv despite the alleged restrictions.
According to Channel 12, an anonymous airline industry official criticized Israeli security's oversight of Flydubai's crew, saying, "The Shin Bet has all the means to know, within five minutes, who all of the pilots on the Dubai airline are, and they simply chose to turn a blind eye."