Derek Moore, chairman of the Association of Independent Tour Operators, told AFP that concerns over a bomb could dissuade British tourists from visiting during the peak holiday period in December.
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“We are 90 per cent sure it was a bomb”.
Russian Federation had also previously refrained from blaming the crash, which killed all 224 people on board, on terrorists until Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s admission.
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A Downing Street spokesperson said last week: “Outbound flights from the United Kingdom to Sharm el-Sheikh remain suspended and the Foreign Office continues to advise against all but essential travel by air to or from Sharm el-Sheikh airport”.
Arriving for talks at the State Department with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Philip Hammond said the definitive cause of the crash would be determined by Egyptian-Russian investigation of the wreckage.
Most of those on board had been Russian and Islamist extremists linked to ISIL say they brought the plane down in retaliation for Russia’s military intervention in Syria. “We are continuing to work with the Egyptian authorities and the airlines on this”, the spokeswoman said.
Egypt is a major tourist destination for Russians, and about 80,000 were still in the country as of Saturday, mainly in Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada.
Fears that the crash was caused by Islamist militants has led Britain, Ireland, France, Germany, Ukraine, Turkey and Russian Federation to temporarily suspend flights to Sharm el-Sheikh. Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands and Belgium are said to be “monitoring developments” ahead of deciding whether to ground flights scheduled to head to the Egyptian resort town.
The first of three Russian teams was dispatched as mourners packed into St Isaac’s Cathedral in St Petersburg for a memorial service for the victims. A number of other countries have also warned their nationals against flying to the resort over security concerns.
According to the AP news agency, security officials at Sharm el-Sheikh airport have long complained of lax security practices, such as malfunctioning baggage screening devices, poor searches at the entry gate for airplane food and fuel, and poorly paid policemen conducting the carry-on X-rays who can easily be bribed.
Hammond said he hoped flights to Sharm could resume soon, once “robust” security arrangements are in place.
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Nearly 5,300 holidaymakers have returned home since flights recommenced on Friday, with 1,936 departing from the Red Sea resort on eight flights yesterday.
