Flydubai pilot planned 9/11-style attack, source tells NBC News

TEL AVIV — The pilot who allegedly tried to bring down an Israel-bound flight had been planning a 9/11-style attack by crashing into the country’s main airport in Tel Aviv, a Middle Eastern official has told NBC News.

The pilot, identified by NBC News as Hamman al-Hamammi, told investigators Monday that he wanted to evade Israel’s defenses and crash into the Ben Gurion Airport or another building, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly.

An Omani citizen, multiple sources from three agencies briefed on the investigation and a diplomat in the Middle East identified al-Hammami. Authorities have not officially released the identity.

He is currently being questioned by investigators in the United Arab Emirates after he was transferred from Saudi Arabia. The flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to an airport in Saudi Arabia, where it landed safely, after last week’s dramatic midair incident.

Emirati authorities said Saturday that the pilot attacked his fellow pilot, Capt. Smit Machchhar, with a crash axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft’s flight controls.

The jet which was carrying 174 mostly Israeli passengers then plummeted 14,000 feet in just…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/world