Two Britons among 19 tourists killed after Valley Of The Kings hot air balloon explodes at 1,000ft and crashes in Egypt cane fields

At least 19 foreign tourists, including two British citizens, have been killed after a hot air balloon crashed near Luxor in Egypt at dawn today.
It appears that only two people may have survived when the balloon came down in a ball of flames after a gas explosion at 1,000ft (300 metres).
Eye-witnesses said there was a fire and a huge bang before the balloon then plunged from the sky and crashed into sugar cane fields west of Luxor.
Tour operator Kuoni has confirmed there were nine Chinese nationals on board the hot air balloon - early reports suggest there were also two British victims, two French tourists and four visitors from Japan.

Scene: These pictures were taken by a tourist 40 minutes before one of these hot air balloons exploded and fell from the sky

Aftermath: Rescue workers inspect the scene of the hot air balloon crash just west of the city of Luxor - it appears that only two people may have survived when the balloon came down in a ball of flames after a gas explosion at 1,000ft

The authorities have been seen putting corpses into body bags and taking them away in ambulances - so far 14 bodies have been located so far. 

A gas explosion caused the crash, according to the state-run EgyNews.
Hamdy Shabaan, operations manager at another operator, said the basket was on fire when it fell to the ground.

Tragedy: At least 19 foreign tourists, including some British citizens, have been killed after their hot air balloon exploded and fell from the sky

Witness: Photographer Christopher Michel took pictures of the group of balloons 40 minutes before the crash, and he also heard the explosion

DEADLIEST HOT AIR BALLOON ACCIDENT IN HISTORY

This morning's accident may be the deadliest hot air balloon accident in history.
The previous highest death toll was in 1989, when 13 people were killed  after two hot air balloons collided in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia.
The mid-air collision happened as one hot air balloon ascended, smashing into another carriage above it.
This caused one of them to be sent crashing towards the ground - the descent reportedly lasted 51 seconds.
Witness statements said the balloon 'folded and fell to earth' and that it 'fell to the ground like a streamer.'
In 1992 the Darwin Supreme Court sentenced the pilot of the upper balloon, Michael Sanby, to two years' jail, with an eight-month parole period, after being found guilty of committing a dangerous act. He was found not guilty on 13 charges of manslaughter.

U.S. photographer Christopher Michel was in another balloon behind, taking some aerial shots, when the accident happened.
‘I was in the balloon in front. There were around eight balloons flying that morning,' he said.

‘I heard a loud explosion behind us and saw lots of smoke.

‘Our pilot said that something like this had not happened for a long time, told us to look forward and we were taken to the ground.
‘I did not see the balloon come down but I would assume it fell.

‘It is a real tragedy and everybody is in a lot of shock.’

Ezzat Saad, the governor of Luxor, told Nile News that the Egyptian pilot of the balloon was in the hospital with 70 percent burns.
Mr Saad listed the nationalities of the people on board as from Hong Kong, Japan, Belgium, Britain, France and Egypt.
But an employee of the company told AFP news agency operating the balloon the tourists were from Korea, Japan, Britain, and Egypt.
The UK Government could not confirm the number of Britons killed in the crash.
A Foreign Office spokesman: 'We are aware of the reports and we are making urgent inquiries with the authorities in Egypt.'
General Mamdough Khaled, director of security for Luxor Governate said in a statement Luxor International Hospital received 19 badly burned bodies.
The catastrophe may be the deadliest hot air balloon accident in history -  in 1989 13 people were killed when two hot air balloons collided in Australia.
Ahmed Aboud, a spokesman for companies that operate balloon flights in the area, said that one torurist and the balloon's pilot may have survived
'There were 20 passengers aboard. An explosion happened and 19 passengers died. One tourist and the pilot survived,' he said.

Shocked: Egyptians gather near the scene of the crash - it is unclear exactly exactly how many people were onboard the flight

Aboud represents eight companies that operate the hot air balloons commonly seen in Luxor.
Hot air balloon trips, usually at sunrise over the Karnak and Luxor temples as well as the Valley of the Kings, are popular with British visitors to Egypt.
Sixteen people were hurt, including two British women, when a balloon crashed during a tour of Luxor in April 2009. The balloon was believed to have hit a mobile phone transmission tower near the banks of the Nile.
Former policewoman Linda Lea, 67, from Stoke-on-Trent, still suffers from the multiple injuries she sustained in that crash.

She said today: 'I cannot believe this has happened again. They promised to tighten safety procedures after my crash. Flights were stopped for a time.

'These balloons are just too unstable. There is not enough training of staff. There were about 22 or 23 in my balloon when it crashed and maybe there was too many then and too many in today's accident.'

Tourists dead: One of these balloons is probably the one that exploded this morning after a gas explosion

Eyewitnesses: People in the area heard a huge bang and saw one of these balloons crash into a sugar cane field

Mrs Lea's injuries included a fractured spine, a broken collarbone, broken ribs and a broken shin.
Her balloon hit a mobile phone transmission tower after a strong gust of wind, sending the balloon crashing to the ground.
Mrs Lea was dragged along the ground and then left in a field for an hour. She was in hospital for a total of four months, receiving treatment in Egypt and then in the West Midlands and then nearer her home.
Following the 2009 crash, early morning hot air balloon flights over the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank of the Nile were suspended for six months while safety measures were tightened up.

During the break, all 42 pilots from the eight companies who operate flights had extra training.
Other initiatives to improve safety brought in included confining all take-offs to a new balloon 'airport' and limiting the maximum number of balloons up at the same time to eight - previously as many as 50 could share the air space.

Luxor is 320 miles south of Cairo and is one of Egypt's most popular tourist destinations as it is close to the famous Valley of the Kings, where many pharaohs are buried, including Tutankhamen.
The incident could damage Egypt's fragile tourism industry, which has suffered a sharp downturn in visitor numbers since the 2011 uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak, with two years of political instability scaring off foreign tourists.

Other incidents: 16 people were hurt in the area, including several Britons, after a balloon hit a mobile phone mast

Popular: Many tourists will take a balloon rise around the majestic Valley of the Kings

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