Flydubai co-pilot is said to have injured pilots – US media reports on previous dismissal from Oman Air

The Flydubai co-pilot who is said to have injured the pilot of the flight to Tel Aviv with 182 people on board had previously been fired from his previous job at an airline in Oman due to safety concerns, according to US media. ABC News reported, citing senior intelligence and law enforcement officials, that Oman Air suspended the man after he was deemed a security risk.

According to information from the US broadcaster, the suspected attacker from Oman was found to have extremist material when he was employed by the airline as a co-pilot trainee in 2024. However, he was therefore allowed to continue working there in an administrative role. The US broadcaster CNN has similar information.

The Wall Street Journal and the AP news agency write, citing people familiar with the matter, that the man from Oman had already been banned from flying at an earlier point in time. The reason for this was the fear that he had radical ideological approaches. It was therefore unclear to what extent he was checked when he was hired in the Emirates. According to ABC News, investigators are currently trying to find out.

Co-pilot has now been brought to the Emirates

The arrested co-pilot, who has now been brought to the Emirates, should therefore cooperate with the investigating authorities. He indicated that he had intended to bring down the Flydubai plane in Israel, the broadcaster quoted sources familiar with the investigation as saying.

The Emirati flight was traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday when the co-pilot allegedly attacked his colleague. According to his own statements, he managed to open the cockpit door despite serious injuries. Several passengers forced their way into the cockpit and were able to overpower the attacker.

The Emirati authorities have launched an investigation, but the motive and intentions of the alleged attacker are still unclear. The Israeli government is already assuming a jihadist terrorist attack - and a high-ranking government representative from the United Arab Emirates recently spoke of terrorism in connection with the violent act.

The US broadcaster CNN reports on a LinkedIn profile that is said to have existed under the name of the alleged attacker and has since been deleted. Two posts are said to have been made on it hours after the violent act. It is therefore unclear who published these and whether they were planned in advance. According to CNN, one of the posts contained a video that ended, among other things, with a photo of the former al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.

»I looked at my father. He was afraid. His face looked like that of a person who knows he is going to die": Eyal Datz was one of the more than 170 people on board the Flydubai plane. Here he talks about the drama in the air.