Russia: First bodies of flight 7K9268 crash victims arrive in St. Petersburg

The first plane from Russia's Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCOM) carrying the remains of crash victims from Kogalymavia flight 7K9268, landed at 05:52 local time (02:52 GMT) at Pulkovo airport in Saint Petersburg, Monday, after arriving from Cairo. Two trucks carrying the bodies of 144 of the crash victims left Pulkovo for the St. Petersburg crematorium, where identification of the victims is reported to begin at 12:00 local time (10:00 GMT). According to the head of EMERCOM press service in Saint Petersburg Igor Ulubikov, a second plane carrying bodies of flight crash victims is expected to arrive in St. Petersburg on Monday evening. Kogalymavia (Metrojet) flight 7K9268 heading to Saint Petersburg from Sharm el-Sheikh, crashed in Sinai around 23 minutes after take-off on Saturday, killing everyone on board. The passenger plane broke up in the air and its wreckage was scattered over a vast area of the Sinai peninsula. There were a total of 224 people on board - 217 passengers, including 25 children, and seven crew members, with reports indicating that all but five passengers - four Ukrainians and one Belarusian - were Russian.