Former Soviet Union airlines have 'poor record' says travel expert

A Russian airliner has crashed in central Sinai with more than 200 people on board, the office of Egypt's prime minister has confirmed.

The Airbus A-321 had just taken off from the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, on its way to the Russian city of St Petersburg.

Egyptian media reports said wreckage of the plane had been found.

The Independent's Travel Editor, Simon Calder, said the airlines of the former Soviet Union ''have a relatively poor record'' compared with western Europe.