Co-pilot planned flydubai attack before airline hired him, Israeli officials say

The co-pilot of a flydubai flight who allegedly stabbed the captain last week told UAE interrogators he planned the attack before being hired by the airline, two Israeli officials said. He reportedly intended to crash the plane into Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv. The co-pilot, Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, also flew to Tel Aviv earlier this year and planned to hijack and crash that flight but chose not to, a third source said. He attacked the pilot with an emergency crash axe on flight FZ1073, which was carrying over 170 passengers and crew. Passengers subdued al-Hammami, and a reserve pilot landed the plane in Saudi Arabia, where he was detained and transferred to the UAE. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered a review of foreign airlines flying to Israel, and an Australian counter-terrorism unit is investigating the co-pilot's past studies at RMIT University.