Russian Airliner Crashes in Egypt, Killing 224

[Darth Penguin]

Bomb may have caused plane crash

The British government has suspended all flights between the UK and the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh after US and UK officials said they believe the Russian plane that crashed over the Sinai peninsula may have been brought down by an explosive device.
The UK foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, said his government is now advising against all but essential travel through Sharm el-Sheikh airport in Egypt as there is a “significant possibility” that the plane was brought down by an explosion on board, the strongest remarks yet by an official on the cause of the crash.
US officials have also suggested a bomb was planted on the plane by Islamic State (Isis) or an Isis affiliate, according to several media reports citing unnamed sources.
“A bomb is a highly possible scenario,” a US official told AFP, four days after the Airbus crashed in Sinai, killing all 224 people on board.

[Darth Penguin]

Cameron "fears bomb may have brought down plane"

Downing Street said a bomb smuggled through Sharm El Sheikh airport was probably behind the downing of a Russian airliner at the weekend.

snip.


he Prime Minister is the first world leader to say the Russian Airbus was downed by a bomb.Hours earlier Islamic State issued a video boasting of shooting down the plane and warning of more attacks.
The crash, which cost 224 lives, would be the first successful airline attack by terrorists since two Russian jets were hit by Islamist extremists in 2004.
The terror alert has left 20,000 British tourists without a flight home. And it throws the travel plans of thousands more into chaos because around 900,000 Britons fly to the Red Sea every year.
Last night Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said he was putting emergency procedures in place to bring stranded Britons home.
As 14 UK flights to Sharm this morning were cancelled, it emerged that:

• US intelligence shows the Russian jet crash was probably caused by a bomb planted by Islamic State;
• Mr Cameron faces testing talks with the Egyptian president at Downing Street today;
• Security at airports around the world is expected to be tightened;
• RAF troop carriers were put on standby to evacuate holidaymakers;
• The deputy head of Sharm airport said the cause of the crash was still unknown.

[Lynn49]

All those "mays" and "suspecteds" and "probablys" are so premature, unless they really know the truth and aren't forthcoming with the facts they have.
For now, it's all conjecture until the truth has been proven by facts.

[Lynn49]

Well, it looks like Russia and Egypt are in full denial IF the plane is confirmed to have been downed by a bomb. Russia, because (according to a source this morning on tv) its military didn't want to get involved in another unpopular war in the first place, and Egypt, because its economy is so dependent on tourism and with the UK already restricting flights in and out of there, they have to protect that industry.

I did hear that the US and the UK have found "chatter" among isis groups about the success of this bombing, but of course, nothing will be made public. So really...who knows?!!

[Patty Smyth]

All those "mays" and "suspecteds" and "probablys" are so premature, unless they really know the truth and aren't forthcoming with the facts they have.
For now, it's all conjecture until the truth has been proven by facts.

One of the problems with plane crashes is always the speculation. It drives me crazy. I can't help but think of the families and what they are going through.

[Lynn49]

Looks like Russia has also now suspended flights to Egypt...

And it's looking more likely that the crash was not caused by "mechanical failure", although everyone is still hedging their bets.....
http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/06/middle...nai/index.html

[Lynn49]

British passenger jet narrowly avoided missle on August 23rd....how interesting is this, now that a crash has occurred??

A British passenger jet headed to the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh narrowly "dodged" a missile in August, the UK media reported following a Russian jet crash in the same area this week.
The Thomson Airways jet with 189 people aboard took off from London and was headed to the Red Sea resort, according to The Guardian.
It said the jet came within 1,000 feet of a missile in its trajectory August 23, and went on to land safely. The paper said passengers were kept in the dark about the incident.
A UK government spokesman confirmed the media reports, but he did not provide any specifics.
"We investigated the reported incident at the time and concluded that it was not a targeted attack and was likely to be connected to routine exercises being conducted by the Egyptian military in the area at the time," the spokesman said in a statement.
In a statement, Thomson Airways said "an event was reported by the crew of flight TOM 476" on August 23. The statement did not describe the event, but said an investigation "concluded there was no cause for concern" and it was safe to fly into Sharm el-Sheikh.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/07/middle...&iref=obinsite

[GoJays]

Why are people still going to that part of the world?? It makes me so angry that people are taking their lives out of their own hands and putting it into the terrorists. This is no longer a tourist destination... STAY AWAY!

[GoJays]

"We investigated the reported incident at the time and concluded that it was not a targeted attack and was likely to be connected to routine exercises being conducted by the Egyptian military in the area at the time," the spokesman said in a statement.

Bullcrap.

The statement did not describe the event, but said an investigation "concluded there was no cause for concern" and it was safe to fly into Sharm el-Sheikh.

Bullcrap again.

[Lynn49]

Bullcrap.


Bullcrap again.

Yep, more spin, taking the lives of innocents; lives that may have been saved if that incident had been reported. It's all political and as usual, we plebians are the pawns.

Jays, I don't understand the draw of people vacationing (with kids!) in an area that is in such disarray right now. When we were there a few years ago it was quiet, peaceful, with lovely people wherever our guide took us. But the sight of men wearing thobes, and carrying machine guns over their shoulders like it's just another day at the office! It was really unsettling to see guns out in public like that...but now? After the collapse of their government, the unrest, why on earth travel there for a vacation?! There are other areas closer to the Brits, the Europeans that can provide them with the sunshine they feel they need...just complete stupidity. There's no other word for it.

[Natalka]

^ It's really, really cheap for them to go there, that's why they go.

A basic package tour including a flight, hotel and meals can be had for as little as $500 or $600 a week.

[Lynn49]

Yes, of course I've heard that it's cheap; that should tell anyone something! Like those cheap Caribbean vacations and cruises during hurricane seasons! Still stupid to go fall for that.

[Darth Penguin]

Russia bans Egypt Air flights after jet crash

Russia's state aviation authority has banned Egypt's national carrier from flying to Russia, a Moscow airport spokesman says.
Flights from Russia to Egypt are already suspended after a passenger plane crashed in the Sinai last month.
All 224 people on board were killed, mostly Russian nationals.
Egypt Air had been the only airline flying between the two countries and the move was to ensure it met safety requirements, Russian media reported.
Sinai Province, a group affiliated to Islamic State, has repeatedly claimed it brought down Metrojet Flight 9268, flying from the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to the Russian city of St Petersburg.
Western officials say there is a strong possibility that a bomb exploded on the plane, but Russia and Egypt say it is too early to draw conclusions.
Following the crash, several countries, including the UK, halted flights to and from the resort due to intelligence concerns - stranding thousands of holidaymakers.

[Natalka]

Russia Confirms Bomb Brought Down Plane in Egypt


MOSCOW — Russia confirmed for the first time on Tuesday that a homemade bomb brought down a Russian charter jet over the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt more than two weeks ago, killing all 224 people aboard.

“We can say definitely that this was a terrorist act,” Alexander V. Bortnikov, the head of the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., said in remarks to Russia’s Security Council.

Russia has offered $50 million for any information leading to the capture of those who carried out the attack, and President Vladimir V. Putin vowed to track them down.

“We will search for them everywhere, no matter where they are hiding,” Mr. Putin said at a meeting with his security council that was broadcast on national television. “We will find them in any place on the planet and will punish them.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/18/wo...=tw-share&_r=0


Two employees at Sharm el-Sheikh airport have been detained in connection with the downing of a Russian passenger jet over Egypt last month, two security officials told Reuters , after the Kremlin said for the first time that a bomb ripped apart the jet.

“Seventeen people are being held, two of them are suspected of helping whoever planted the bomb on the plane at Sharm el-Sheikh airport,” one of the officials said.

in a Kremlin meeting on Monday night, three days after Islamist gunmen and bombers killed 129 people in Paris, Alexander Bortnikov, the head of Russia’s FSB security service, told a meeting chaired by President Vladimir Putin that traces of foreign-made explosive had been found on fragments of the downed plane and on passengers’ personal belongings.

“According to an analysis by our specialists, a homemade bomb containing up to 1 kilogramme of TNT detonated during the flight, causing the plane to break up in mid-air, which explains why parts of the fuselage were spread over such a large distance,” said Bortnikov. “We can unequivocally say it was a terrorist act,” Bortnikov said in footage that was not released until Tuesday morning.

Putin responded by saying the incident was one of the bloodiest acts in modern Russian history and ordered the Russian air force to intensify its airstrikes in Syria in response. “It [the air campaign] must be intensified in such a way that the criminals understand that retribution is inevitable,” he said.


http://www.theguardian.com/world/201...curity-service

[Darth Penguin]

Friend of a friend story-time..

I've heard a lot over the past few years about how lax Sharm el-Sheikh airport security is..Especially in comparision to western standards.