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1st LD Writethru: Flights from Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh to Britain delayed as precautionary measure

Xinhua, November 5, 2015 Adjust font size:

Flights due to leave Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh for Britain Wednesday evening were delayed as a precautionary measure, the British Prime Minister's office announced.

10 Downing Street made the announcement when an investigation uncovered more information that the Russian plane, which crashed in mid-air on Saturday, "may well have been brought down by an explosive device".

"In light of this, and as a precautionary measure, we have decided that flights due to leave Sharm for the UK this evening will be delayed," it said.

The measure allows a team of aviation experts from Britain, which is now traveling to Sharm, to make an assessment of the security arrangements in place at the airport and to identify whether any further action is required.

It said the assessment was expected to be finished later on Wednesday.

The Prime Minister's office said extra consular staff had been deployed to Sharm airport and were working with the airlines to assist British holidaymakers there.

A Russian airliner crashed in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula on Saturday while heading from Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg. All 224 people on board, mostly Russian tourists, were killed. Endit