The flydubai co-pilot accused of attacking Captain Smit Machchhar told Saudi investigators that he wanted to bring down the aircraft and did not fear dying, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal, citing a Saudi official briefed on his interrogation.

Hamam al-Hammami, a 29-year-old Omani national, is now being questioned in the United Arab Emirates after being transferred from Saudi Arabia, where the aircraft made an emergency landing following the mid-air incident.

The UAE attorney general said on Saturday that the co-pilot had attempted to carry out a terrorist act. Authorities in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Israel are investigating the case, including possible links between the suspect and outside groups or actors.

Hammami is accused of repeatedly attacking Machchhar with a crash axe before trying to seize control of the plane. The captain managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew members to intervene and restrain the co-pilot.

More than 170 people were aboard the flight at the time of the attack.

Investigators examine possible radicalisation

Investigators are looking into Hammami’s background, including his time in Syria and his online activity, the WSJ report said.

Born to an Omani father and a Syrian mother, Hammami had lived in Dubai for several years and had also spent time in Syria during the country’s civil war. People familiar with the investigation told the newspaper that authorities were examining whether he had been influenced by extremist groups or ideas during that period.

Posts from a deleted account on X are also being reviewed. More than 3,000 screenshots reportedly remain accessible through the Internet Archive. Some posts expressed opposition to women working and discussed preferences for a religious wife who wore a veil.

In a post from December 2021, Hammami reportedly said he had used a fake online identity, posing as Syrian or Lebanese, to contact Saudi women. In another, he wrote that he would not allow his wife to work.

Questions over how he was hired by flydubai

Hammami had previously been barred from flying by Oman Air and later sought employment with other airlines. Moroccan state media reported that he had applied to Royal Air Maroc in 2025.

Flydubai hired him in February this year. The WSJ said it could not establish what background checks the airline conducted before employing him, although the UAE generally carries out extensive security screening for pilot recruitment.

People familiar with Hammami’s background told the newspaper that Oman would have shared relevant information if another country had requested it. They said, however, that Oman had not received any such request from foreign authorities seeking details for employment vetting.

The UAE government and flydubai have declined to comment while the investigation is underway.

Hammami had also completed an online aviation management course at Buckinghamshire New University in England.

From aviation enthusiast to suspect in cockpit attack

Hammami had earlier shared posts about his interest in flying. In a now-deleted Arabic-language post from June 2022, he reportedly described flight training and the experience of flying solo and landing an aircraft carrying passengers.

He studied aviation in the UAE before joining Oman Air, which was his first employer in the industry.

According to people briefed on his background, Oman Air later prohibited him from flying after authorities became aware of his interest in extremist websites. He was reportedly enrolled in a deradicalisation programme and moved to a desk-based role.

The investigation is now examining how Hammami was subsequently able to return to flying and obtain a position with another airline.