Russian plane black boxes point to ‘attack’
Black box data from the Russian plane
that crashed in Egypt last week indicates
it was hit by a bomb, sources said,
before an Egypt-led probe into the
disaster was set to release its first
findings Saturday.
Both the flight data and voice recorders
failed 24 minutes after the plane took off
from the Sharm el-Sheikh resort en route
to Saint Petersburg, when it plummeted
from the sky into the Sinai Peninsula
killing all 224 people on board.
Cairo and Moscow initially dismissed a
claim Islamic State (IS) jihadists downed
the plane, but growing evidence it was
attacked has prompted several countries
to warn against travel to Sharm el-
Sheikh.
On Friday, Russian President Vladimir
Putin also ordered flights to the Red Sea
resort halted, in a fresh blow to Egypt’s
already struggling tourism industry.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told
news agencies the measure did not mean
Russia believed the crash — the worst
aviation disaster in Russia’s history —
was due to an attack, and the
investigation continued.
The head of Russia’s emergencies
ministry said Russian experts had taken
samples from the crashed jet and were
testing it for any traces of explosives.
But a source close to the investigation
told AFP the black box data “strongly
favours” the theory a bomb on board
brought down the plane.
Another person close to the case in Paris
said the plane had suffered “a violent,
sudden” end, saying: “Everything was
normal during the flight, absolutely
normal, and suddenly there was
nothing.”
Egyptian Aviation Minister Hossam
Kamal and the head of the Egypt-led
investigation into the disaster are due to
hold their first news conference at 1500
GMT on Saturday, although the
government warned it could be delayed.
– ‘Security was horrendous’ –
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s
office said he called Putin and they
agreed to bolster coordination to
“strengthen security measures for
Russian planes”.
With international concerns mounting,
European airlines prepared to bring
home thousands of tourists from the Red
Sea resort, which has been a jewel in
Egypt’s tourism crown.
Denmark on Friday became the latest
European country to warn against
travelling to Sharm el-Sheikh, following
France, Belgium and Britain, while
several airlines have banned check-in
luggage as a precaution.
The US said it would also step up security
screenings of US-bound flights from
some Middle East airports as a
precaution.
There were angry scenes in Sharm el-
Sheikh, as thousands of anxious Britons,
who had also hoped to fly home, were
sent back to their hotels after Egypt
blocked several other repatriation
flights.
“I think a lot of people will question
whether they ever want to go to Egypt
again,” Emma Turner, a 34-year-old
from southeast England, said after
arriving back in London.
Eight flights carrying some 1,400
travellers returned to Britain on Friday
after restrictions were lifted, but tourists
were only allowed to bring carry-on
bags.
Kamal said only eight of 29 flights could
take off because the airport could not
cope with all the luggage left behind.
Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted a
representative of national carrier
Aeroflot saying a plane would be sent
Friday to pick up stranded Russians.
– Tourism industry hit –
IS said it downed the plane in retaliation
for Russian air strikes in Syria, but has
provided no details as to how.
If it was behind the attack, it would be
the first time the jihadists, who control
large areas of Syria and Iraq, have hit a
passenger plane.
US President Barack Obama has said that
Washington was “seriously” considering
the possibility of a bomb aboard the
plane, while British premier David
Cameron told reporters it was “more
likely than not that… a terrorist bomb”
caused the crash.
Egypt has beefed up security at airports
to “give confidence to the British
government, but that does not mean we
concur with any scenario,” foreign
ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid
said.
The crash has the potential to deeply
damage Egypt’s tourism industry, still
struggling to recover from a turbulent
four years following its 2011 revolution.
Once a remote beach on the edge of the
Red Sea, Sharm el-Skekh has grown into
the jewel of Egypt’s tourism industry,
with dozens of luxury hotels and night
life attracting tourists from around the
world.
The town attracted on average three to
four million tourists a year before the
2011 popular uprising that ousted
longtime president Hosni Mubarak.
A flower is seen near debris at the crash
site of a Russian airliner in al-Hasanah
area in El Arish city, north Egypt,
November 1, 2015. REUTERS/Mohamed
Abd El Ghany
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