Thousands of British tourists who had been promised flights home from Egypt to Britain on Friday faced another night in the Sharm el-Sheikh resort after 21 of 29 rescue flights were blocked by the Egyptians and the diplomatic row with Britain continued. UK flights were halted on Wednesday amid fears that a Russian plane crash last week was caused by a bomb. The Russian Metrojet Airbus A321 aircraft was flying from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg on Saturday when it crashed in the Sinai desert, killing all 224 people on board.
An inquiry into the causes of the crash is ongoing.
On Friday, Egyptian authorities said the many thousands of passengers who had been told that UK authorities would okay them to leave (but their bags would follow about seven days later) would put an unbearable strain on the airport's storage and logistics capabilities.
Empty planes sent from Britain to carry the stranded passengers then either were turned back or grounded after arriving in Sharm.
Egyptian officials said only eight of the 29 flights to the UK planned for Friday could fly because they have limited airport slots and no space for all the suitcases British holidaymakers must leave behind for security reasons.
Among UK carriers, Monarch said only two of five flights from Sharm el-Sheikh to the UK would go ahead; Thomas Cook scheduled one flight instead of four; British Airways, with one flight, said it would go ahead; Thomson operated two of nine flights and only two Easyjet flights left for Gatwick and Luton.
Meanwhile, Russia has decided to ban all flights to and from the Egyptian resort.
Germany’s Lufthansa subsidiaries Edelweiss and Eurowings also have banned flights to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt as the consensus grows that a bomb could have been responsible for the crash.
A bigger problem is seen as the impact on tourism to the region. Many UK and other countries' intending travellers already have cancelled flights to Egypt.
Thousands of British tourists who had been promised flights home from Egypt to Britain on Friday faced another night in the Sharm el-Sheikh resort after 21 of 29 rescue flights were blocked by the Egyptians and the diplomatic row with Britain continued. UK flights were halted on Wednesday amid fears that a Russian plane crash last week was caused by a bomb. The Russian Metrojet Airbus A321 aircraft was flying from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg on Saturday when it crashed in the Sinai desert, killing all 224 people on board.
An inquiry into the causes of the crash is ongoing.
On Friday, Egyptian authorities said the many thousands of passengers who had been told that UK authorities would okay them to leave (but their bags would follow about seven days later) would put an unbearable strain on the airport's storage and logistics capabilities.
Empty planes sent from Britain to carry the stranded passengers then either were turned back or grounded after arriving in Sharm.
Egyptian officials said only eight of the 29 flights to the UK planned for Friday could fly because they have limited airport slots and no space for all the suitcases British holidaymakers must leave behind for security reasons.
Among UK carriers, Monarch said only two of five flights from Sharm el-Sheikh to the UK would go ahead; Thomas Cook scheduled one flight instead of four; British Airways, with one flight, said it would go ahead; Thomson operated two of nine flights and only two Easyjet flights left for Gatwick and Luton.
Meanwhile, Russia has decided to ban all flights to and from the Egyptian resort.
Germany’s Lufthansa subsidiaries Edelweiss and Eurowings also have banned flights to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt as the consensus grows that a bomb could have been responsible for the crash.
A bigger problem is seen as the impact on tourism to the region. Many UK and other countries' intending travellers already have cancelled flights to Egypt.
