LINE

Text:AAAPrint
Society

Russian plane crashes in Egypt's Sinai, 100 bodies found

1
2015-10-31 20:26Xinhua Editor: Yao Lan

Rescue teams have found at least 100 bodies in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula where a Russian airliner carrying 224 people crashed on Saturday, a security source told Xinhua.

The rescue teams are still searching for survivors and have transferred bodies of the victims to hospitals in Cairo by military planes, the source said.

Most of the people on board are probably dead, a police officer at the scene told Xinhua by phone on condition of anonymity.

The Airbus A-321 which was operated by Russian airline Kogalymavia and carried 217 Russian passengers along with seven crew members crashed in the Sinai Peninsula shortly after it took off from the Red Sea Resort Sharm el-Sheikh early Saturday.

The plane took off at 5:51 a.m. (0351 GMT) and disappeared from radar after 23 minutes, according to a statement released by Egypt's prime minister's office.

Military helicopters have located the crash site in the Hassana district in central Sinai, a mountainous area 35 km south of Al Arish city.

Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail was heading to the crash site with several cabinet ministers, the tourism ministry said.

The state-run Ahram online news website reported that the crash was caused by a "technical failure."

The crash of the Russian plane was due to a "technical failure" and was not shot down, Ayman Al-Mokadem who is heading a committee to monitor the event was quoted by Ahram as saying.

"The pilot sensed a technical failure and reported to the aviation authorities that he wanted to land at the nearest airport," the report said.

However, the aviation ministry said it has not determined the reasons of the crash.

An aviation team is on their way to extract the black boxes and at least 45 ambulances have been sent to the site.

  

Related news

MorePhoto

Most popular in 24h

MoreTop news

MoreVideo

News
Politics
Business
Society
Culture
Military
Sci-tech
Entertainment
Sports
Odd
Features
Biz
Economy
Travel
Travel News
Travel Types
Events
Food
Hotel
Bar & Club
Architecture
Gallery
Photo
CNS Photo
Video
Video
Learning Chinese
Learn About China
Social Chinese
Business Chinese
Buzz Words
Bilingual
Resources
ECNS Wire
Special Coverage
Infographics
Voices
LINE
Back to top Links | About Us | Jobs | Contact Us | Privacy Policy
Copyright ©1999-2018 Chinanews.com. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.