French Media: Black Boxes Show Bomb Downed Russian Jet

Military investigators from Russia stand near the debris of a Russian airliner at the site of its crash at the Hassana area in Arish city, north Egypt, Nov. 1, 2015.

French media report that the black box recorders found in the wreckage of a Russian passenger jet show that a bomb brought down the plane over Egypt last week, killing all 224 on board.

France 2 television and the French news agency AFP cite sources close to the investigation.

The AFP source says according to investigators, the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder show everything was normal aboard the Russian Metrojet.

Then 24 minutes into the flight, "suddenly there was nothing" with one of the boxes registering a loud sound and a "violent, sudden end," strongly indicating that a bomb went off.

WATCH: related video report by VOA's Carolyn Presutti

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Political Agendas Cloud Plane Investigation

Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt

U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron have both said it is certainly possible the plane was bombed.

Russia suspends flights to Egypt

Russian President Vladimir Putin has called the bomb theory nothing but speculation.

But Putin on Friday suspended all Russian commercial flights to Egypt, heeding the recommendation of his security chief Alexander Bortnikov "until we have determined the true reasons" for the crash.

Putin has also ordered the government to work out details of how to bring as many as 40,000 Russians vacationing in Sharm el-Sheikh back home.

The jet packed with Russian tourists took off from the Egyptian resort of Sharm al-Sheikh last Saturday, headed for St. Petersburg.

A U.S. official has said intercepted communications point to Islamic State and that someone inside the Sharm el-Sheikh airport helped plant the bomb.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for blowing up the plane, but has not given any proof.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi dismissed Islamic State's claim as propaganda aimed at damaging Egyptian and security and its tourist industry which is vital to the economy.

The British Ambassador to Egypt, John Casson, talks to British tourists after the announcement by easyJet staff that there would not be any more flights today to evacuate tourists from Sharm el-Sheikh, south Sinai, Egypt, Nov. 6, 2015.

Delays leaving Sharm

British tourists encountered long delays in leaving Sharm el-Sheikh Friday, with the British airline easyJet only making two flights to London and canceling seven others.

No explanation was given, but the airline said Egyptian authorities blocked the additional flights.

British authorities forced the 359 travelers who left Sharm el-Sheikh on the two flights to leave most of their luggage behind, except for carry-on bags, so thorough searches could be conducted before the luggage is out on separate planes.

Other European airlines have also suspended flights to the resort and urged travelers to be extra vigilant during all trips to Egypt.

VOA's Ken Bredemeier, William Gallo and Carolyn Presutti contributed to this report in Washington.