All flights between the UK and Sharm el Sheikh have been suspended indefinitely in light of the Egypt plane crash, amid growing fears the disaster was caused by an explosive device on board.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said the Government is now advising against all but essential travel through the resort's airport as there is a "significant possibility" the Russian jet was brought down by an explosion.

The Metrojet plane, which was travelling from Sharm to St Petersburg, crashed in the Sinai Peninsula with 224 people on board.

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Speaking after a meeting of the Government's emergency committee COBRA, Mr Hammond said stranded passengers in Sharm will be returned to the UK, but reassured tourists that the popular resort itself was still considered safe.

Mr Hammond apologised for the "immense disruption and inconvenience" caused, but said the safety and security of British nationals was paramount.

It is believed up to 20,000 Britons are in the Sharm area.

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The Government said it is working with airlines and the Egyptian authorities to get some flights up and running as soon as possible, but stressed this will take time. There will be no flights returning on Thursday.

A number of travel operators have responded to the announcement by grounding flights.

The UK's decision comes after a review of the security at Sharm airport by a team of British experts.

While they found the Egyptian authorities have stepped up their efforts, "more needs to be done", a Downing Street spokeswoman said.

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It would take until at least Friday to get sufficient security arrangements in place to start bringing tourists home, with passengers being taken to hotels, she added.

No 10 said in a statement earlier that while it cannot "categorically" be said what caused the crash, "as more information has come to light we have become concerned that the plane may well have been brought down by an explosive device".

The nature of the crash and the lack of an SOS have led to days of speculation the jet was brought down by a bomb or a missile.

A US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said US intelligence agencies have preliminary evidence that a bomb was the cause.

The official added that intercepted communications have played a part in the tentative conclusion that an Islamic State affiliate planted an explosive device.

A source close to the Egyptian team investigating the jet's black boxes, quoted by Reuters, also said an explosion was looking more likely, but added it is unclear whether it was linked to fuel, engine trouble or a bomb.

A Russian aviation source told the news agency two possibilities are now being considered - something stowed inside the jet and a technical fault.

:: Philip Hammond will be live on Sky News at 7.40am.