Israel’s Transportation Ministry has acknowledged that it does not perform independent background checks on foreign aircrews operating flights into the country, stating it cannot guarantee foreign-operated flights are “100 percent” safe.
The statement comes amid mounting scrutiny following a near-catastrophic incident aboard flydubai Flight 1073, where an Omani co-pilot violently attacked the commanding captain in an attempt to crash the Tel Aviv-bound aircraft.
”We are not an intelligence body that checks the intelligence background of foreigners. We have no forces abroad. We have no staff that checks every person there. Nothing is 100% when it comes to security.”
— Representative, Israel Transportation Ministry Division
The Cockpit Attack & Emergency Landing
According to investigative updates, Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami attacked commanding Indian Captain Smit Machchar with a cockpit crash axe during the flight from Dubai. The assault led to a violent pitch-down, sending the aircraft into an extreme descent that tore away part of the rudder.
Despite severe injuries, Captain Machchar managed to unbolt the cockpit door, allowing off-duty crew members and Israeli passengers to intervene, overpower al-Hammami, and stabilize the flight deck. The Boeing 737 executed an emergency landing at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia.
Vetting Lapse and Political Reaction
Reports reveal that al-Hammami had previously been dismissed by Oman Air due to extremist views and radicalization. Under standard guidelines, pilots hailing from nations without formal diplomatic ties to Israel—such as Oman—are generally restricted from flying Tel Aviv routes.
Israeli officials conceded that they have no mechanism to track how many pilots from hostile or non-diplomatic states operate flights into Ben Gurion Airport, maintaining that pre-flight vetting remains the sole responsibility of individual commercial carriers.
