The United Arab Emirates has said that an Omani co-pilot working for flydubai allegedly planned to seize control of a Dubai-to-Tel Aviv flight and crash it into the passenger terminal at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport in a suicide attack, but was thwarted by his fellow pilot.
Federal Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said on Friday that the 29-year-old suspect had prepared the alleged plot in advance, according to the state-run Emirates News Agency (WAM).
The incident occurred on September 30 and caused the aircraft to plunge 16,000 feet in 30 seconds, according to reports. The suspect allegedly intended to cause the greatest possible loss of life by targeting the airport terminal.
“The suspect had begun carrying out a premeditated terrorist plot to seize control of the aircraft and use it to launch a suicide attack targeting the passenger terminal at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv,” Al Shamsi said.
Previous flights to Ben Gurion
The investigation, launched on October 1, found that the suspect had taken two earlier flights to Tel Aviv to familiarise himself with the route and airport, WAM reported.
UAE prosecutors believe the alleged plan was inspired by the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, according to the agency.
Al Shamsi said investigators examined the suspect’s ideological and professional background and found that signs of what authorities described as “extremism and terrorism” had emerged in 2017, while he was studying in Australia.
According to WAM, the suspect had previously worked for several airlines in different countries, including Oman Air and Royal Air Maroc, before joining flydubai in January 2026.
The allegations were announced by UAE authorities as the investigation into the incident continued.
