The co-pilot who attempted to hijack a flydubai flight was grounded by Oman on suspicion of extremism

(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) The Dubai Airlines co-pilot who attempted to hijack a plane on September 30 has now been revealed by the Wall Street Journal, CNN and Saudi media to have been grounded by his home country Oman because he was suspected of holding extremist views.

The Wall Street Journal pointed out that despite Oman’s decision to ground the pilot last year, the UAE’s flydubai still employs him as a co-pilot and even allows him to fly sensitive routes to Israel. The newspaper also mentioned that it is currently unclear whether Oman has shared concerns about the pilot's radicalization tendency with other countries or airlines, and the specific nature of his radicalization tendency is also unclear.

CNN quoted two sources as saying that the co-pilot was fired from Oman’s national airline last year because he was suspected of holding extremist views. Saudi media outlet Al Arabiya also quoted internal sources as saying that the co-pilot had been previously identified by the Omani authorities as having extremist ideas.

"Lone wolf" or under the orders of others?

Currently, the investigation into the hijacking case is still ongoing. A diplomat from a Persian Gulf country told the Associated Press that investigative authorities are trying to find out whether the Omani co-pilot committed the crime as a "lone wolf" or if he had ties to any extremist organization.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated on the day after the incident that he had learned that the co-pilot had "received radical Islamic indoctrination" and attempted to deliberately crash the plane. Netanyahu also said that he was investigating whether the co-pilot committed the crime alone or was instructed by others, and warned that anyone involved would pay a "heavy price."

Israel and the UAE signed the Abraham Accords in 2020 and normalized relations. This is also the prerequisite for flydubai to be able to fly to Israel.

Tool of crime: fire ax on the plane

The UAE's official news agency WAM quoted the country's Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi as saying that the Omani co-pilot who stabbed the Indian captain on Dubai Air Flight 1073 was armed with an emergency fire ax and intended to "launch a terrorist attack." Emergency fire axes are usually stored in the cockpit of civil aviation aircraft for use in emergencies.

However, despite being seriously injured, the Indian captain continued to fight and tried to open the cockpit door, allowing the passengers who heard the noise to rush into the cockpit and subdue the co-pilot. One of the passengers pulled the control column, causing the plane to end its high-speed dive. Subsequently, the two off-duty pilots in the cabin took over the plane and diverted it to Saudi Arabia.

At the time of the incident, there were 182 pilots, flight attendants, and passengers on board the Boeing 737 Max aircraft.