A FlyDubai co-pilot who allegedly stabbed his colleague in an attempt to seize and crash an Israel-bound aircraft spent almost six months in New Zealand.
Omani national Hammam al-Hammami is currently in custody in the United Arab Emirates following the bloody attack.
New Zealand-trained pilot Smit Machchhar was seriously injured in the attack but managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers to enter and restrain the attacker as the Boeing 737 descended more than 4000m, witnesses and Israeli authorities said.
Machchhar trained at Mainland Air in Dunedin for about 18 months in 2008 before returning to India to continue his aviation career.
The Omani national stabbed the pilot and tried to bring down the plane. (Source: 1News)
Assistant Commissioner Michael Johnson confirmed the co-pilot who allegedly attacked Machchhar spent six months in New Zealand on a student visa while finishing part of his flight training.
"Immigration records show he arrived in New Zealand on 30 November 2018 and departed 23 May 2019, having spent 175 days in the country," Johnson said.
"Police can confirm the co-pilot was in New Zealand to complete a portion of his flight training for a UK-based company, no longer operating in New Zealand."
Johnson said police were currently reviewing records and undertaking inquiries with regard to the time he spent in New Zealand.
Meanwhile, Australian security agencies are investigating the Omani pilot’s time in Australia around a decade ago, Australian Federal Police said.
A police statement on Monday said a joint counterterrorism team, including federal and state police and Australia’s domestic intelligence agency, “is investigating the man’s links to Australia”.
– additional reporting by Associated Press
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