Radicalisation is an old story that the aviation industry seems to have forgotten. They screen passengers, but forgot that the enemy might emerge from amongst their own pilots. The story of Hamam al-Hammami will shake the aviation industry. The modus operandi was the same as on 9/11.
Many US media outlets have identified the co-pilot who attempted to carry out a terrorist attack on board a flydubai flight full of Israelis as the 29-year-old Omani national Hamam al-Hammami.
CNN reports that a LinkedIn profile bearing this name, which has since been deleted, shows that he worked for Oman Air for a period of seven years ending in February 2025, before joining the Moroccan airline Royal Air Maroc in June 2025 and leaving in January 2026. The news channel states that the profile makes no mention of flydubai, but that a source with knowledge of the matter confirmed that it was his account, which also indicates that he studied at Buckinghamshire New University in England.
The report quotes a source at the university who told CNN that he studied via distance learning at the institution for three years, completing his studies in 2023 with a degree in aviation management.
CNN also reports that al-Hammami’s X and Instagram accounts have since been deleted, and that the latter shared two videos following the attack – one of which contained footage of Israeli aircraft filmed from other cockpits, before concluding with images of the former al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and the Jordanian triple agent Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, who in 2009 carried out a deadly suicide bombing attack targeting a CIA base in Afghanistan.
The second post reportedly contains an AI-generated image of Islam’s three holiest cities – Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem – whilst a defiant poem is recited in the background.
Trump’s security team has been at Camp David to devise a response to Iran’s terrorism. Iran’s hand is now seen behind the threat against the Fairford base, the terrorist plots against Jews in Manchester and the flydubai flight. JD Vance chaired the meeting. The response could be ruthless.
