The co-pilot accused of attacking the captain of a flydubai flight to Israel had previously been barred from flying in Oman over concerns about his extremist views, multiple media outlets reported.
Scrutiny into the alleged assailant — who was identified in the reports as Omani national Hamam al-Hammami — and his motives has intensified after Wednesday’s drama aboard a Dubai-Tel Aviv route that officials say narrowly avoided catastrophe.
During the flydubai flight, the jet’s Indian captain was assaulted by his co-pilot but he managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to overpower the attacker and force an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.