The foiled hijacking of a FlyDubai passenger jet is exposing deep vulnerabilities in how the United States and its allies confront modern terrorism, according to a veteran rescue expert and 9/11 first responder who warns that Western nations are dangerously underestimating their adversaries.
Bryan Stern, chairman and CEO of Grey Bull Rescue, told Fox News Digital that the attempted attack aboard FlyDubai flight FZ1073 demonstrates that radical networks remain emboldened and sophisticated, while Western counterterrorism strategy relies on outdated assumptions. «They're good at chess,» Stern said of the attackers. «And we're, if we're lucky, playing checkers — if we're lucky — and I would argue we're not even playing checkers that well.»
The incident occurred when the co-pilot of the flight, which was carrying more than 170 passengers and crew, most of them Israelis, allegedly stabbed the captain and attempted to seize control of the aircraft. United Arab Emirates investigators have described the episode as an attempted terror attack. Australian authorities have launched a counterterrorism investigation into the co-pilot's links to that country.
Stern, whose nonprofit organization conducts evacuations from war zones and hostage situations, said the attack should serve as a wake-up call for global aviation security and Western intelligence agencies. He argued that the United States and its partners must study their enemies with the same discipline that a football coach applies to game film. «The reason why a football coach watches game tapes is not to watch his own team play, it's to watch the bad guys play,» he said. «We gotta start watching some game tapes.»
He described the attacker as «an angry, radicalized, Sunni bad guy» and said the ideology driving such attacks represents a persistent threat that has only grown more complex since the September 11 attacks. «They understand us significantly more than we understand them,» Stern said, adding that the US must master «asymmetric warfare» as thoroughly as its enemies have.
Stern's warning comes amid renewed scrutiny of aviation security on multiple fronts. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed his national security council to review security procedures for foreign civil aviation flying to Israel. Vice President JD Vance said Monday that flight security procedures are also under review in the United States.
The rescue expert, who has spent three decades «hunting the bad guys,» said he has personally met with members of Hezbollah, the Taliban, ISIS, and ISIS-K, giving him a rare ground-level view of terrorist networks. He cautioned that military force alone cannot eliminate the threat. «You can't bomb your way into peace,» Stern said, arguing that the ideological dimensions of the conflict require a more sophisticated response.
He also raised concerns about how terrorists might exploit US passports to infiltrate the country, making them difficult to identify before an attack. «Until I actually squeeze the triggers, I haven't committed a crime yet,» he said. «Now give me an airplane. That's the problem.»
Stern contrasted today's adversaries with those the US faced in Afghanistan, describing the current threat as «extremely sophisticated, extremely resourced, extremely resourceful.» He warned that the enemy is «completely not afraid» and «completely emboldened,» fueled by a broader geopolitical environment that has intensified hatred toward Israel and the United States.
The attempted hijacking has renewed vigilance across the aviation industry and among foreign airlines operating in the region. Stern's assessment underscores a growing debate among security officials about whether post-9/11 counterterrorism frameworks remain adequate against enemies who have adapted faster than the institutions designed to stop them.