Russian Aircraft with 212 Passengers Crashed in Egypt
KABUL: (Middle East Press) A Russian passenger plane with 212 people on board has reportedly crashed in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, according to Russian and Egyptian authorities.
Kolavia Flight 7K9268, an Airbus A320, went off radar 23 minutes after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh International Airport, Sergey Izvolskiy told the media citing preliminary data.
While some reports, including one by Sky News Arabia, said the plane had crashed, Egyptian air traffic officials were quoted in other reports as saying that the plane had contacted Turkey and had “safely” passed through Egyptian skies.
Most of the passengers are said to be Russian tourists.
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.
A “Russian civilian plane… crashed in the central Sinai”, the office of Egyptian Prime Minister Sharif Ismail said in a statement.
Egyptian security sources say there is no indication the plane was shot down.
