By NEWSCOUNT Desk
New interrogation details have revealed an alleged plan by Hamam al-Hammami to crash flydubai Flight 1073 into a building or another aircraft at an airport after taking control of the cockpit and eliminating the captain.
Al-Hammami, who is under arrest and being interrogated in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), reportedly told investigators that his original plan was to continue the flight normally after disposing of the captain, obtain all necessary landing clearances and wait until the aircraft was approaching the airport before crashing it into a building or another aircraft.
According to the account, he deliberately intended to wait until the final moment before carrying out the plan so that the passengers, crew and authorities would have little opportunity to understand what was happening, raise the alarm or stop him.
Al-Hammami reportedly told investigators that this was why he waited until the aircraft was over Jordan before attempting to seize control of the cockpit.
His plan, however, was disrupted after Captain Smit Machchhar, despite being attacked and stabbed with the aircraft’s crash fire axe, managed to unlock the cockpit door. The opening of the door enabled passengers and crew members to enter the flight deck and overpower Al-Hammami.
Among those who intervened was Yaniv Hayun, identified as “The Plumber”, who reportedly put Al-Hammami in a headlock and threw him out of the cockpit while other passengers held him down.
During the struggle, there was a brief period when nobody was at the aircraft’s controls. Hayun then moved to the controls and helped pull the aircraft out of the dive before two other pilots who had been immediately behind him reached the cockpit and took over.
Al-Hammami had reportedly visited Ben Gurion Airport several times in recent months after flying there with flydubai. He told investigators that during a visit in June, he devoted his attention to gathering intelligence and planning the operation.
He had initially intended to carry out the plan in July but cancelled it at the last moment because he was friends with one of the crew members.
“I looked into which airline flies to Tel Aviv. That’s why I chose flydubai. I planned it even before I was accepted,” Al-Hammami reportedly told interrogators.
The sequence of events began when Al-Hammami requested permission to pray at about 9:15 a.m. in the small space behind the pilots’ seats, close to where the aircraft’s crash fire axe was kept.
He subsequently attacked Captain Machchhar with the axe, triggering a struggle inside the cockpit as the captain worked to unlock the door from the inside.
At about 9:20 a.m., Tali Manes accompanied her five-year-old daughter to the business-class bathroom, which is located next to the cockpit. She reportedly began hearing an argument from inside and alerted the cabin crew.
The cabin crew then alerted an off-duty pilot who was seated in business class. As the off-duty pilot turned the outside cockpit door handle, Machchhar managed to unlock the door from inside.
The door opened, revealing Al-Hammami attacking the captain.
Realising that his original plan had been disrupted, Al-Hammami reportedly began putting the aircraft into a nose dive at about 9:21 a.m., apparently intending to crash it into the desert. He also allegedly attempted to damage the controls to prevent anyone else from stabilising the aircraft.
Several passengers and crew members then stormed the cockpit, overpowered him and helped stabilise the aircraft.
The off-duty pilots who initially intervened in flying the aircraft set the transponder to code 7700 at about 9:31 a.m., signalling a general emergency.
At about 9:35 a.m., Al-Hammami had been subdued. Three minutes later, at approximately 9:38 a.m., the pilots changed the transponder code to 7500, indicating unlawful interference, before later returning it to 7700 after the situation had been brought under control.
Saudi air traffic control subsequently directed the pilots to make an emergency landing in Tabuk, where the aircraft landed at about 10:57 a.m.
There were 174 people on board the aircraft.
Captain Machchhar and Al-Hammami were subsequently returned to the UAE, with Machchhar receiving medical treatment while Al-Hammami was taken into custody for interrogation.
The UAE authorities are reportedly seeking the harshest possible penalty for Al-Hammami, who is expected to face the death penalty over the alleged attempted hijacking and planned destruction of the aircraft.
