Biodun Iginla, BBC News

Biodun Iginla, BBC News
Showing posts with label Sinai plane crash. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sinai plane crash. Show all posts

Friday, November 6, 2015

Sinai plane crash: Russia suspends Egypt flights


by Maria Ogryzlo and Biodun Iginla, BBC News, Moscow

18 minutes ago

Russia has ordered the suspension of all flights to Egypt following indications that the crash near Sharm el-Sheikh was caused by a bomb.
President Vladimir Putin made the announcement after UK investigators said they believed a bomb was put in the plane's hold prior to take-off, killing all 224 people on board.
Militants linked to the Islamic State group (IS) say they downed the plane.
The Metrojet Airbus A321 was flying from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg when it came down in Sinai on Saturday. Most of the victims were Russian.
Militants from the Sinai Province group, linked to IS, have not said how they destroyed the plane. IS has called for a war against both Russia and the US over their air strikes in Syria.
UK officials said they had received intelligence based on intercepted communications between militants in the Sinai Peninsula, indicating a bomb caused the crash.
However, both Egypt and Russia earlier insisted it was too early to draw conclusions.
Media captionOne British tourist at Sharm el-Sheikh airport described extra security as "brilliant"

Delays explained

Mr Putin's decision to suspend Russian flights to Egypt came after after a recommendation by the head of Russia's FSB security service during a crisis meeting in Moscow.
The Russian leader "has instructed the government to work out mechanisms to... ensure Russian citizens return home," his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
"The president also issued an instruction to establish co-operation with the Egyptian side to ensure air traffic safety," Mr Pskov said.
Russia says as many as 45,000 Russian holidaymakers are in currently in Egypt. The UK estimates that 19,000 of its nationals remain stranded in Sharm el-Sheikh.
Many Britons were due to return on Friday but one of the main airlines operating from the resort, Easyjet, says its plans have been sharply curtailed by the Egyptian authorities, with only two of its 10 flights leaving.
Egyptian Aviation Minister Hossam Kamal denied banning any flights, but said there was an issue of "capacity" at the airport, with extra security and more planes than usual.
Egyptian servicemen approaching a piece of wreckage of Russian MetroJet Airbus A321 at the site of the crash in Sinai, Egypt, 1 November.Image copyrightEPA
Image captionThe plane disintegrated in mid-air, officials say
As the investigation into the crashed airliner continues, BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says that although British officials have not ruled out a technical fault, they think that is increasingly unlikely.
New intelligence was received on Wednesday. The UK government's Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) has spent the past few days assessing what brought the plane down.
Media captionHow important is tourism to Egypt's economy?
Security service investigators suspect someone with access to the aircraft's baggage compartment inserted an explosive device inside or on top of the luggage just before the plane took off.

Sinai Province militants

  • Most active insurgent group in Egypt, with 1,000-1,500 members
  • Operating in Sinai Peninsula since 2011
  • Pledged allegiance to Islamic State group in November 2014
  • Carries out suicide bombings, shootings, beheadings; dozens of Egyptian soldiers killed.
US President Barack Obama told a CBS radio station on Thursday that he thought there was "a possibility" that there was a bomb on the downed jet.
"We're taking that very seriously," he said.
Since Wednesday, several countries have joined Britain in restricting travel to Sharm el-Sheikh.
Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, who has been on a visit to the UK, told reporters that security at the airport was tightened 10 months ago at the UK's request.
Egypt is leading the investigation into the air disaster, with the help of Russian and other foreign experts.
Are you in Sharm el-Sheikh? Are you flying back to the UK? If you have any information to share with the BBC, you can emailhaveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
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Sinai crash


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Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Sinai plane crash: Bomb may have downed airliner, US and UK say

by Biodun Iginla, BBC News, London

34 minutes ago


Intelligence suggests the Russian plane that crashed in Egypt killing all 224 people on board may have been brought down by a bomb, US and UK officials say.
But they say they have yet to reach a formal conclusion.
Britain earlier suspended flights to and from the resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, from where the flight had departed.
Egypt has dismissed claims by militants linked to Islamic State (IS) that they brought down the plane.
Russian experts say it is too early to say.
Separately on Wednesday, Egyptian officials said the cockpit voice recorder of the Metrojet Airbus 321 was badly damaged in the crash.
However, they managed to extract information from the flight data recorder which is ready to be analysed by investigators, Egypt's Civil Aviation Minister Mohamed Hossam Kamal said.
Theories about causes
What we know so far
Who were the victims?

'Significant possibility'

The plane, bound for St Petersburg, crashed in Egypt's Sinai desert just 23 minutes after take-off from Sharm el-Sheikh on Saturday.
Most of those on board the plane, which was operated by Russian airline Kogalymavia, were Russian.
Media captionDid bomb cause Sinai plane crash?
"We have concluded that there is a significant possibility that the crash was caused by an explosive device on board the aircraft," UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told reporters after the government's crisis response committee met late on Wednesday.
He said Britain was suspending all flights to and from Sharm el-Sheikh indefinitely and UK nationals already there would be helped to leave once extra security measures were put in place.
Earlier, Prime Minister David Cameron's office said UK aviation experts had been sent to Sharm el-Sheikh to assess the security situation there.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry called the UK response premature and unwarranted, telling the BBC that Egypt had taken "exceptional measures" to enhance security at Sharm el-Sheikh airport.
The UK government is currently hosting Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi.
One of the two black boxes retrieved from the wreckage of the Russian plane that crashed in EgyptImage copyright AFP
Image caption Investigators hope flight data will provide clues as to what caused the plane to crash
An unnamed US official told the Associated Press news agency they had reached the "tentative conclusion", after intercepting communications, that an IS affiliate in the Sinai peninsula had planted an explosive device on the plane.
"A bomb is a highly possible scenario," another US official told the AFP news agency.
But the officials stressed that forensic evidence, including the flight recorders, was still being analysed.
On Tuesday, US media reported that a military satellite had detected a "heat flash" over the Sinai at the time of the crash.
It said data was still being analysed and that although the flash could have been caused by a bomb, a fuel tank or engine explosion was also possible.
Mr Sisi, in a BBC interview on Tuesday, dismissed as "propaganda" claims that militants linked to IS brought down the aircraft.
The militants have carried out a series of deadly attacks against Egyptian security forces in recent years.
Kogalymavia earlier this week blamed "external influence" for the crash, but the head of Russia's aviation agency said such talk was premature.
Graphic of plane and crash site

Timeline: the course of flight KGL9268

05:58 Egyptian time (03:58 GMT): Flight leaves Sharm el-Sheikh
06:14 Egyptian time (04:14 GMT): Plane fails to make scheduled contact with air traffic control based in Larnaca, Cyprus, according to an official with Russia's air transport agency
06:17 Egyptian time, approx (04:17 GMT): Plane comes down over the Sinai peninsula
11:12 Egyptian time (09:12 GMT): Flight had been due to land in St Petersburg's Pulkovo airport

More on this story

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Sinai plane crash: Bomb fears prompt Sharm flights suspension


by  Selina O'Grady and Biodun Iginla, BBC News, London

23 minutes ago

The Russian plane that crashed in Egypt at the weekend "may well have been brought down by an explosive device", Downing Street has said.
All flights between the UK and Sharm el-Sheikh have been suspended on Wednesday evening as UK experts assess security at the Egyptian airport.
Number 10 said flights had been delayed as a "precautionary measure" after "more information has come to light".
Russian Airbus 321 crashed on Saturday, killing all 224 people on board.
"We would underline that this is a precautionary step and we are working closely with the airlines on this approach," a Number 10 spokesman said.
Aviation experts have travelled to Egypt to make an assessment of the security arrangements at the Egyptian airport and expect to complete an investigation tonight.
Their findings will be considered in a meeting of the government's Cobra emergency committee, chaired by Prime Minister David Cameron, which is under way.
Egypt's President Sisi is currently in the UK, and is due to meet the prime minister on Thursday. They spoke on Tuesday before Downing Street released its statement.

'An explosive device'

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said the delays would allow UK experts time to make sure "the right security measures are in place".
"We can not categorically say why the Russia jet crashed but we have become concerned that the plane may well have been brought down as a result of an explosive device," he said.
Analysis
By Paul Adams, BBC defence correspondent
As mood music for a high-level diplomatic visit, this is pretty discordant.
With two telling words, "may well", David Cameron's spokesperson has left little doubt that British officials believe the Russian jet was brought down by a bomb. This contradicts President Sisi's initial insistence that the crash was caused by a technical fault and strikes at the heart of Egypt's precious tourism industry.
It's one thing to suspend flights TO a foreign country, but to suspend them FROM that country and insist that your own technical experts assess security arrangements before flights can resume displays a striking lack of confidence in that country's own security measures.
The continued success of Sharm el-Sheikh as a popular holiday destination depends entirely on the ability of the Egyptian authorities to seal off the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula from its troubled interior. The British statement clearly questions that ability. A negative assessment by the UK experts could have devastating consequences for the Egyptian tourism industry.
President Sisi's visit to London was always going to be controversial, with critics wondering why the government was once again rolling out the red carpet for another foreign strongman.
But now that strongman's possible weaknesses are being aired in public, at a time when he's urging western partners to show faith in his leadership. It's an uncomfortable position to be in, but will at least serve to underline President Sisi's assertion that the danger posed by so-called Islamic State is a growing one which demands an international response.
BBC transport correspondent Richard Westcott said there was some concern over airport security screening in Sharm el-Sheikh.
Following the announcement, EasyJet said it had delayed two UK-bound flights from the resort - one to Gatwick and one to Luton airport - this evening.
"We are doing all possible to keep passengers informed," a spokesman added.
Thomson has suspended its flights to and from the resort, including flight TOM 895 out of Manchester Airport which was due to land at 2330.
The company apologised for any inconvenience caused to customers and said they would be in touch as more information became available.
A spokesman for British Airways, which is due to fly to Sharm el-Sheikh on Thursday, said: "Things are moving fast and we are waiting for the government to update later in the evening."
Graphic of plane and crash site
The government said it recognised that the latest advice "may cause concern" for Britons already in the holiday resort and for those planning to travel, saying people should contact their airline or tour operators.
Extra consular staff have been deployed to the airport.

2,000 holidaymakers

Foreign Office travel advice for passengers travelling to Egypt has not changed.
The BBC's Christian Fraser says there are around 2,000 British holidaymakers currently in Sharm el-Sheikh.
Simon Calder, travel editor at the Independent, said "hundreds" more holidaymakers are due to fly back on Thursday or Friday, saying airlines might fly empty planes to Egypt in order to bring people home.
British holidaymaker Craig Peacock, who has been in Egypt for nine days, said finding out he may not be able to return home is "not the greatest news".
But, he said, postponing flights was "the right thing - we don't want a repeat of what happened last week".
Another tourist, Sarah Cotterill, from Portsmouth, is at the airport waiting for a flight home, alongside several hundred other travellers.
She said there has been little information and airport staff have "no idea" how long they will be waiting.
The suspension of flights was "slightly humiliating" for Egyptian authorities, BBC security correspondent Frank Gardener said.
Our correspondent said the action comes as there have been "growing suspicions" the Russian plane was brought down by an explosive device, possibly by a bomb smuggled into the plane's cargo hold.
The Metrojet flight bound for St Petersburg from Sharm el-Sheikh came down in Egypt's Sinai desert.
Are you in Sharm el-Sheikh? Are you planning to travel to the Sinai region from the UK? Are you affected? If you have any information to share with the BBC, you can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways:
Or use the form below
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If you are happy to be contacted by a BBC journalist please leave a telephone number that we can contact you on. In some cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name as you provide it and location, unless you state otherwise. Your contact details will never be published. When sending us pictures, video or eyewitness accounts at no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. Please ensure you have read the terms and conditions.
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