Air France, the French unit of Air France- KLM Group, and Deutsche Lufthansa AG said they’ll avoid flying over the area in Egypt where a Russian-operated aircraft went down earlier on Saturday, diverting planes as a precaution until more information becomes available on the cause of the crash that killed all 224 passengers and crew on board.
The two airlines reacted as Egyptian authorities began probing the cause of the crash in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Preliminary investigations indicate the plane, an Airbus 321 operated by Russia’s Metrojet, may have come down because of a technical issue, the state-run Ahram Gate website said, citing Egyptian security officials.
The choice of flight paths has become an issue of public debate in the wake of downing of a Boeing Co. 777 wide-body jet last year over eastern Ukraine, an area that some airlines had already avoided amid fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro- Russian separatists on the ground below. The July 17, 2014, crash of Flight MH17 that killed 298 people was later described as having been caused by a missile launched from rebel-held territory. While Ukraine had blocked air traffic below a certain threshold, it had allowed airlines to fly at cruising altitude above zones where military conflicts had occurred.
Precautions
“In light of appropriate precautions displayed in the MH17 incident it makes sense now for airlines to display an abundance of caution,” said Robert Mann, an aviation consultant in Port Washington, New York. “But I’m not aware of anything suggesting a ground-to-air missile.”
The Russian plane crashed 23 minutes after taking off from Sharm el Sheikh, a popular Red Sea resort. The airliner, which took off at 5:51 a.m. Cairo time heading for St. Petersburg, had reached a cruising altitude of 31,000 feet, Egypt’s Civil Aviation Ministry said.
Airlines themselves set their flight plans. Airline dispatchers file flight plans to determine the ideal path, which has to be accepted by air-traffic control authorities or air-navigation services providers.
At KLM, a spokeswoman said the airline had no flights scheduled in that area today so there was no need to review flight paths. She said the airline would exercise caution in the event it has flights set to fly in the area.
At British Airways, a spokeswoman said the airline “would never operate a flight until it was safe to do so,” declining to discuss specific routes, citing company practice.
Skift
10 month old passenger becomes face of Sinai Crash
A 10-month-old girl gazing at the planes in St. Petersburg airport before departing to Egypt – this picture of Darina has become the symbol of the plane crash in Sinai on social media. People continue to bring flowers to mourn the tragedy.
Darina Gromova was among the 224 people who died on Kolavia flight 7K9268. It was returning from Egypt’s Sharm El-Sheikh resort to Russia’s St. Petersburg on Saturday morning when it suddenly vanished from radar over the Sinai Peninsula.
Her parents – mother Tatiana and father Aleksey – were also among those killed in the crash.
“Main passenger. #family. #darinagromova. Pulkovo International Airport Saint-Petersburg New Terminal 1,” wrote Tatiana hours before their plane took off from St. Petersburg to Sinai. Little did she know that this photo would become the grieving symbol of the tragic flight.
People across Russia took to social media to say how touched they were by the story of little Darina. The hashtag #mainpassenger has taken to Twitter.
“RIP, Little angel,” “I feel pity for these people, especially for this little miracle who was only 10 months old,” “I am sobbing all day,” wrote users on Twitter.
Twenty-five children are believed to have been on board, along with 192 adults – nearly 140 of whom were women.
The flight disappeared from radar screens 23 minutes after taking off. Those on the crashed Airbus A321 were mostly holidaymakers. The Egyptian Red Sea destination is popular among Russian tourists all year round.
An overwhelming majority of people on board were Russian nationals. Three Ukrainians and one Belarus citizen are also reportedly among the crash victims. The catastrophe is the deadliest in Russian aviation history.
‘We just can’t be indifferent’: Tribute to plane crash victims
On Sunday, Russia is mourning the victims of the Sinai plane crash.
Dozens of people have gathered in St. Petersburg to pay tribute to the victims. People laid flowers and candles at the place where the plane was supposed to land in Pulkovo Airport. The governor of Russia’s northern capital has extended the mourning period until Tuesday.
“I don’t know any of the victims, but I am from St. Petersburg myself and my family is. I have two small children and I just can’t be indifferent when things like that happen,” one woman told RT.
“Things like this can happen to anyone, they happen all the time, no one is safe… And it is very sad,” a man holding a small child added.
RT News
Metrojet 9268 has crashed in Egypt
A Russian airliner has crashed in central Sinai with more than 200 people on board, the office of Egypt’s prime minister has confirmed.
The Airbus A-321 had just taken off from the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, on its way to the Russian city of St Petersburg.
Egyptian media reports said wreckage of the plane had already been found and at least 20 ambulances sent to the scene.
Most of the passengers are said to be Russian tourists.
Latest updates
The plane was operated by the small Russian airline Kogalymavia, based in western Siberia. Latest reports say it was carrying 217 passengers and seven crew.
Initially there were conflicting reports about the fate of the plane, some suggesting it had disappeared over Cyprus.
But the office of Egyptian Prime Minister Sharif Ismail confirmed in a statement that a “Russian civilian plane… crashed in the central Sinai”.
It added that Mr Ismail had formed a crisis committee to deal with the crash.
The Russian aviation authority Rosaviatsiya said in a statement that flight 7K 9268 left Sharm el-Sheikh at 06:51 Moscow time (03:51 GMT) and had been due into St Petersburg’s Pulkovo airport at 12:10.
The authority added that the aircraft failed to make scheduled contact with Cyprus air traffic control 23 minutes after take-off and disappeared from the radar.
A centre to help relatives of the passengers has been set up at Pulkovo airport, Tass news agency quoted St Peterburg city officials as saying.
BBC News
A Metrojet (former Kogalym Avia, Kolavia) Airbus A321-200, registration EI-ETJ performing flight 7K-9268 from Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt) to St. Petersburg (Russia) with 217 passengers and 7 crew, was climbing through FL307 out of Sharm el Sheikh over the Sinai Peninsula (Position N30.16 E34.17) at 04:12Z when the aircraft disappeared from radar. Wreckage of the aircraft was later located in mountaineous terrain near Al-Arish (Sinai, Egypt).
Egyptian sources were reporting the aircraft was believed crashed, a search for the aircraft in Sinai was ongoing.
Egypt’s Prime Minister confirmed the aircraft has crashed.
Egyptian Authorities reported first parts of the wreckage have been located. There is no evidence of hostile/missile activity around the flight path of the aircraft.
Russia’s Rosaviatsia (Civil Aviation Authority) reported the A321 of Kogalym Avia carried 217 passengers and 7 crew.
Sources in Sharm el Sheik reported the captain of the flight reported technical problems and requested to return to Sharm el Sheikh.
According to flightplan the aircraft was tracking between waypoints TBA (Egypt: N29.362420 E34.475080) and PASOS (Cyprus FIR, N32.216667 E33.100000) when it disappeared. Eurocontrol’s Air Flow Traffic Management (CFMU) issued a note to all operators along the route TBA-PASOS and vice versa shortly after the aircraft disappeared, that due to technical problems all flights will be tactically rerouted via MELDO until further notice. The notice was removed a couple of minutes later.
The Aviation Herald