Foreign experts in Egypt to inspect wreckage of Russian plane

Monday 29-08-2016 04:41 PM

An Egyptian man puts flowers near debris at the crash site of a Russian airliner in al-Hasanah area at El Arish city, north Egypt, November 1, 2015. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany

CAIRO, Aug 29 (Aswat Masriya) - Experts from Russia and Germany arrived in Cairo on Monday to inspect the wreckage of a Russian passenger plane that crashed in Sinai in October, the Egyptian-led investigating committee said.

The committee is investigating a plane crash that took place in the Sinai Peninsula in October, killing all 224 on board. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the downing the place that was heading from the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg in Russia.

“All parts of the wreckage had been previously gathered and moved to a secure place at the Cairo International Airport,” the committee’s statement read, saying the experts will attempt to reconstruct the plane.

Representatives from Russia and Germany, the airline's country of origin, and the manufacturer's, respectively, arrived in Cairo to inspect the wreckage of the plane, according to the statement. 

“Irish, American, and French representatives are expected to join the inspection team,” the committee added.

The plane was registered in Ireland and designed in France, while the United States is the engine maker's country of origin.

Egypt's Civil Aviation Minister Sherif Fathy said last week that Egypt and Russia agreed on a roadmap, which includes the arrival of a number of delegations to inspect resorts, hotels and airports’ security, for the resumption of Russian flights and tourism to Egypt.

Egypt suffered a 41.9 per cent drop in the number of incoming tourists in July compared to a year earlier, the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS) said on Monday.

The agency attributed its findings largely due to a 60 per cent decline in incoming Russian tourists and a 17.5 per cent slump in number of British tourists.

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