Alexander Bortnikov, a former KGB official who is now head of the FSB security service said: ‘Until we know the real reasons for what happened, I consider it expedient to stop Russian flights to Egypt.
However, the claims by Le point also come amid reports that another source close to the investigation said the black boxes were yielding almost no useful information on establishing the cause of the disaster which claimed the lives of 224 people.
The insider said the flight data recorder ‘abruptly’ stopped working just over 20 minutes from takeoff, without giving any clue over the nature of the catastrophe which hit the plane .And the voice recorder, including crucial conversations involving the pilots, is ‘badly damaged’ and ‘may also be useless’, according to Kommersant.
Baggage handlers at the Egyptian airport with links to ISIS or other terror networks could have used their high-level security clearance to wave an explosive device through pre-flight checks. Downing Street said it is one of a ‘range of options’ being considered as part of investigations into how a bomb could have been smuggled on board the flight. (TBW)