DOMINANT ANGLE
Rome takes away from the Flydubai affair the threat posed by a radicalized pilot: digital traces, emergency axe, and cockpit vulnerability dominate Italian coverage.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Emirati Attorney General Hamad Saif Al Shamsi states, via the Wam agency, that the co-pilot of flight FZ1073 used the emergency axe against the commander and attempted to take control.
- 02
The co-pilot is identified by American media as Hamam al-Hammami, a 29-year-old Omani, born in the Emirates to an Omani father and a Syrian mother, according to La Repubblica.
- 03
According to CNN, as cited by ANSA, a LinkedIn profile in his name, later deleted, posted two updates nine hours after the incident, including a photo of Ayman al-Zawahiri.
ANALYSIS
Rome, October 4, 2026. The Italian press first reports the statement of the Attorney General of the United Arab Emirates, Hamad Saif Al Shamsi. According to ANSA, which cites the official Wam agency, the investigation into the Flydubai FZ1073 Dubai-Tel Aviv flight of Wednesday, September 30, has established that the co-pilot was preparing a "terrorist act": he used the cockpit's emergency axe to attack the commander and attempt to "take control of the plane". The prosecutor adds that the investigations are ongoing.
The second part of the story is the identity of the man. ANSA, based on several American media outlets, names him Hamam al-Hammami, a 29-year-old Omani. La Repubblica, under the pen of Fabio Tonacci, specifies that he was born in the Emirates to an Omani father and a Syrian mother, and reports on videos of a "terrorist nature" found on his accounts: images of Al-Qaeda speakers and Israeli planes, published just after the hijacking attempt. ANSA details, according to CNN, two posts on a LinkedIn profile later deleted, with images taken in the cockpit of a Boeing 737 Max, devices from Israeli companies like El Al, a photo of Ayman al-Zawahiri, as well as images of Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem. The agency acknowledges, however, that it is unknown who published them and whether they had been programmed.
La Repubblica dedicates a second article, signed by Aldo Fontanarosa, to the weapon: the axe, or crowbar, that planes are required to carry for security reasons, in case of fire or accident. In this case, the newspaper writes, the device "has proven to be a boomerang".
ANSA also notes the bilateral dimension: after the suspension of flights by the Emirates, a first flight bringing Israelis back from Dubai landed in Tel Aviv in the early hours of Saturday, October 3. The authorities, according to the agency, estimate that a catastrophe was narrowly avoided, and the motive of the aggressor has not yet been established.
The two newspapers do not discuss the Australian investigation or the Israeli questions about crew control, nor the co-pilot's career at Oman Air: the Italian reading remains focused on the event on board, the identity of the suspect, and the technical risks of the cockpit.
