It is too early to say why a pilot stabbed another pilot and tried to take over a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Israel's prime minister has said.

The Flydubai plane plunged more than 17,000ft (5,200m) two hours into its journey on Wednesday morning during the attack, before passengers and crew overpowered the pilot and retook control to land safely.

The stabbed pilot, named as Indian national Captain Smit Machchhar, was taken to hospital but is in a stable condition. He has been hailed as a "true hero" by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

After landing, passengers described the moment they broke into the cockpit, the sound of screams and seeing blood.

Describing the event as "a serious security incident," Netanyahu said the alleged attacker was arrested in Saudi Arabia.

Authorities have yet to give a motive for the attacking pilot, but the Israeli prime minister added it was "too early to say" if there was any indication of Iran's involvement.

Speaking to Fox News later on Wednesday, Netanyahu said he expected the attacker would be taken to the United Arab Emirates, where the plane took off.

He told CNN that Israel did not have any warning or advance intelligence about the incident on the plane, which was flying 174 people to Israel.