Australia, New Zealand probe Flydubai pilot's time there
Deutsche Welle · LC · trust 46/100
The Flydubai pilot from Oman suspected of trying to crash a plane in Israel spent time in Oceania as a young man. Police in both Australia and New Zealand said they would investigate his links to the countries.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NmxT The copilot is suspected of hijacking the Israel-bound flight with a view to crashing it intentionally, attacking his pilot with the emergency ax in the cockpit in the process (FILE: September 30, 2026) Image: Gil Cohen-Magen/dpa/picture alliance Advertisement Security agencies in Australia and New Zealand on Monday said they were investigating the time that the co-pilot of Flydubai flight FZ1073 spent in the countries in his youth
The Omani national is in custody in the United Arab Emirates . He is suspected of attacking his pilot Smit Machchhar with the emergency ax in the cockpit, and attempting to hijack the plane and crash it intentionally in Israel .
The pilot and passengers combined to thwart his attempts and restrain him. After a near-vertical dive lasting around 30 seconds during the fight for control, the plane made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) said on Monday that the man had enrolled at the Melbourne university in the state of Victoria, but said that he did not successfully complete an engineering qualification.
A spokesman for the Australian Federal Police said that the Victorian Counter Terrorism Team — comprising federal poice, Victorian state police, and the ASIO intelligence agency — was "investigating the man's links to Australia."
Based on Australian media reports, the man arrived on an Australian student visa in 2014, enrolled in 2015, left in 2017, and had his visa canceled in 2019.
Flydubai passengers recount terror after hijacking attempt To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Similarly, police in New Zealand said on Monday that the suspect spent time there, without specifying exactly where or when.
"We are looking into the time he spent here, alongside other agencies where appropriate," New Zealand Police assistant commissioner Micahel Johnson told the RNZ news outlet, issuing similar comments elsewhere. "We are unable to comment further at this time."
Flight FZ1073's pilot, Indian national Machchhar , also spent some of his formative years in New Zealand. He completed his early flight training some 18 years ago with the Mainland Air carrier.
"I was really pleased to read how he handled the situation," the airline's chief executive Philip Kean told RNZ. "He got through and he got the door open so the other people could save the airplane, because if he hadn't done that, it would have been a disaster."
If you rely on our team for trusted reporting, please take a moment to select us as your Preferred Source on Google , so you'll always see our verified news first.
Read the original at Deutsche Welle →
Open in TruthVane →