Israel's Transportation Ministry has said it does not conduct background checks on pilots flying into the country and cannot guarantee that those flights are "100 percent" safe, amid growing questions over whether the Israeli government could have prevented the near-disaster aboard flydubai Flight 1073 earlier this week.
“We are not an intelligence body that checks the intelligence background of foreigners,” a representative of the division said in a statement, according to Israel daily Ynet. “We have no forces abroad. We have no staff that checks every person there.”
According to Bloomberg, Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami, who assaulted the commanding Indian captain Smit Machchar on the flydubai flight enroute to Tel Aviv from Dubai on Wednesday, previously flew aircraft for Oman Air before he was dismissed for engaging with what were considered radical views. Reports claimed he attacked Captain Smit Machchar with a crash axe, an emergency tool normally kept in the cockpit.
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The ministry said it could not say how many pilots from hostile states have flown into Israel, and would not guarantee that foreign airline flights are fully secure. It added that background checks are left to the airlines. “Nothing is 100% when it comes to security,” it said.
{{/usCountry}}The ministry said it could not say how many pilots from hostile states have flown into Israel, and would not guarantee that foreign airline flights are fully secure. It added that background checks are left to the airlines. “Nothing is 100% when it comes to security,” it said.
{{/usCountry}}The incident on Wednesday took place when the flight was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv. The flight, carrying 174 passengers, transmitted emergency signals and made a rapid descent of more than 17,000 feet from 34,000 feet.
The plane made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia after a descent so extreme that part of the rudder was torn away, and aviation experts have marvelled that it didn't crash. FlyDubai has said crew travelling on the plane helped to stabilise it and land.
Also Read | Flydubai co-pilot was banned by Oman over radical views, terrorist images found on social media: Reports
The UAE, which is leading the investigation, said on Saturday that its investigation had revealed the co-pilot attempted to carry out a "terrorist act".
On Friday, Machchhar spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the phone, recounting the terrifying moments after being attacked. He said he was fighting for his life but was determined not to let others die.
The pilot is in stable condition, and he is "recovering well", the Indian Embassy in the UAE said in a social media statement on Saturday.
Also Reading | ‘Blows kept coming’: Capt Smit Machchhar's detailed account of flydubai ‘crash attempt’ in call with Netanyahu
Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu Benjamin had earlier met four Israeli passengers, who helped overpower the attacker, hearing their account of the struggle to save the aircraft. The passengers said they tied the co-pilot with a headphone cable after he was subdued.
Netanyahu praised their "supreme heroism, resourcefulness, and faith", saying they had prevented a major disaster and saved many lives. He also said the passengers would light a torch of civic heroism on Israel's Independence Day.
In an interview with CNN on Wednesday evening, Netanyahu said the injured pilot, passengers and other crew members had "managed to prevent a 9/11 disaster".