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United Airlines has suspended one of its pilots due to social media posts praising the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel. The pilot in question, whom The Daily Wire names as Captain Ibrahim R Mossallam, had initially been removed from service back in November of 2023, a month after his social media posts. However, he was quietly allowed to begin flying again after a period of paid suspension.
Now, the carrier has confirmed that he has been removed from service again. Elsewhere, reports have emerged that his fellow United pilots feel such a level of distrust towards him that they prefer to fly in the cockpit jumpseats rather than in first class when ‘deadheading’ on flights operated by Mossallam. The news comes just a month after United Airlines resumed flights from Newark to Tel Aviv.
Suspended Again
According to The Daily Wire, Mossallam’s posts were made on the day of the attacks three years ago, and, as they came to light, United faced pressure to fire him. The carrier suspended him with pay while it opened an investigation into the matter, with those higher up the chain allegedly also wanting to fire him but being prevented from doing so due to union protection. He resumed flying shortly after.
The exact duration of his suspension is unclear, with media reports stating six months and a court filing saying that he was out of the cockpit for as little as one month. Since then, Mossallam has reportedly continued to be outspoken on social media, and it has now emerged that United has, as a spokesperson put it to View From The Wing, “withheld this pilot from service pending an ongoing review.”
Simple Flying has reached out to United Airlines for further information on this matter. We will update our coverage upon receiving a statement from the carrier.
Distrust From Colleagues
Another interesting point noted in coverage of the matter by View From The Wing is that Mossallam’s fellow pilots at United Airlines have lost their trust in him. This reportedly manifested itself in an incident when two pilots who were ‘deadheading’ (flying as passengers on their way to a work assignment) on a United Airlines flight that Mossallam was operating chose to give up their first class seats.
Instead, according to sources who were said to be familiar with the incident, the pilots in question opted to spend the entirety of the flight in the jumpseats of the aircraft’s cockpit. This, it is thought, was so that they could monitor him during the flight, with their sense of distrust and concern clearly strong enough that it took precedence over their first class comfort. The exact date of this incident remains unclear.
As Simple Flying explored back in February 2024, ‘deadheads’ are often (but not always) the first or last flight in a pilot or flight attendant’s trip sequence. They are paid for their time on the aircraft, as this form of travel is considered to be part of their job, and they are expected to be in uniform. Crucially, however, they are not obliged to carry out their usual working duties, and can, instead, relax in their seats.
United Airlines Recently Resumed Flights From Newark To Israel
In recent years, flights to and from Israel have become a somewhat contentious matter. Earlier in 2026, just as things looked like they were starting to stabilize again on the country’s aviation front, its attack on Iran alongside US forces plunged Middle Eastern aviation into wider uncertainty, with airlines once again having to put their long-haul flights on hold. United, for example, won’t return to Dubai until March.
However, it has made progress in recent months when it comes to resuming its flights to and from Israel. Most notably, the Jerusalem Post reported last month that it had restarted its flights from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) in Tel Aviv. Data from Flightradar24 shows that these services operate twice a day using Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners, taking just under ten hours.
