The key facts

  • The pilots turned out to be Henson Steven (Fiji) and Rowan Toot (South Africa), who were flying as additional crew members
  • On September 30, second pilot Hamam Al-Hammami wounded the captain; passengers subdued him
  • The aircraft landed in Tabuk (Saudi Arabia); on October 27 the pilots received Zayed Orders

Names revealed at award ceremony

The pilots who landed the FlyDubai aircraft after the attempted terrorist attack on September 30 turned out to be Fijian national Henson Steven and South African national Rowan Toot. This was reported by the Israeli outlet Ynet, citing which Gazeta.Ru writes. The names became known on October 27, when the pilots were awarded the UAE's highest state honors — the Zayed Orders. Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the UAE president, emphasized that this award in the country is recognition of courage and heroism in saving people.

How events unfolded on board

Steven and Toot were on board the Boeing 737 MAX 8 as additional pilots and were scheduled to operate the return flight. On September 30, on the aircraft flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv, the second pilot — Omani citizen Hamam Al-Hammami — attacked the captain and wounded him. Passengers managed to subdue the attacker, after which Steven and Toot took over the controls and landed the airliner at Tabuk Airport in Saudi Arabia.

Context

This is not the first disclosure of details of the incident: back in early October, new details about the attempted hijacking of the FlyDubai aircraft were published. The fate of the wounded captain and further measures regarding Al-Hammami are not reported in available publications.