Israeli authorities and the country’s internal security service are investigating whether pilots holding Iranian, Syrian and Iraqi nationalities were able to land at Ben Gurion Airport in recent years.
The investigation is examining whether pilots with dual nationalities, including citizenship from countries considered hostile by Israel, operated foreign airline flights to Israel without undergoing the required security checks.
According to information under investigation, Israeli authorities received lists of pilots from Flydubai, but the lists were allegedly not subjected to the necessary security screening.
The investigation also indicates that some pilots who operated foreign airline flights to Israel in previous years held dual nationalities. International parties are also assisting Israel in examining what authorities consider a potential security gap.
The investigation follows the incident involving Flydubai Flight FZ1073, which was bound for Tel Aviv and raised security questions regarding the identity and nationality of one of the aircraft’s crew members, as well as the procedures used to verify the backgrounds of foreign airline crews.
Israeli authorities are seeking to determine the extent of the alleged security gap and whether screening procedures for the nationalities and backgrounds of pilots operating flights to Ben Gurion Airport need to be tightened.
