By Alexander Cornwell and Maayan Lubell JERUSALEM, Oct 5 (Reuters) - The flydubai co-pilot who stabbed his captain in a suspected attempt to crash the plane has told UAE interrogators he planned the

Hamam al-Hammami allegedly planned to crash FlyDubai Flight FZ1073 into Ben Gurion Airport, according to reports on the terrorism investigation.

Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami allegedly told investigators that he chose the flydubai because it operated flights to Tel Aviv.

Machchhar initially believed that a broken component of the aircraft had hit him. He soon realised that he was being deliberately attacked.

Hamam al-Hammami is in custody in the United Arab Emirates. Read more at straitstimes.com.

The UAE had shared information about the people travelling on the flydubai flight with Israeli authorities before it left Dubai. The information included nationalities.

Investigators have so far established no operational connection between al-Hammami and Al Qaeda or any other terrorist organisation. The UAE has not publicly set out a motive or said whether he acted alone. Authorities are examining his employment history, online activity and contacts.