As of this writing, it increasingly appears that the Russian Metroliner A321-200 Airbus was indeed downed by an explosion. Curiously, no traces of explosive residues have yet been found –or at least yet reported. There remains the much smaller probability that the aircraft's tail may have fallen off as the result of metal fatigue caused by a ground collision over a decade ago.

Egypt, whose vital tourist industry has been battered this year after bloody repression of opponents of its brutal military dictatorship, refuses to admit a bomb was involved. The crash was due to poor maintenance, claims Cairo.

Sharm el-Sheik, the Metroliner's departure point, is Egypt's primary resort for low-budget travellers. An estimated 20,000 Britons and 40,000 Russians were at the isolated resort or in Cairo. Even so, Egypt's once thriving tourist industry is down by over 50%.