A Russian passenger airliner crashed on Saturday morning in the Sinai Desert in Egypt. There were 224 crew and passengers aboard the Metrojet flight and all are feared to be dead. Egyptian rescue crews who were the first responders to the crash said that it appears as if all of the passenger and crew were dead but there is yet to be official word from Egyptian authorities.

The plane belongs to Kogalymavia Airlines and is an Airbus A 321. The flight left the Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh bound for Saint Petersburg, Russia, according to Reuters. Reports are that there are bodies strewn everywhere among the wreckage and that many of the passengers were killed while still in their seats. Some rescue workers reported hearing voices from inside the plane.

So far rescue workers have recovered about one hundred bodies. The plane split in two when it landed and the front end of it crashed into a giant rock. The rescue workers are treading carefully because this part of the country is controlled by the Islamic State who has been at war with Egypt, and everyone else. While an investigation is far from complete, Russian authorities are saying that it doesn’t appear as if the passenger airliner was shot down.

The prime minister of Egypt as well as cabinet member have flown to the scene. Family and friends of the passengers and crew remain huddled and anxious at Saint Petersburg’s international airport. Airbus has released no comment with regard to the crash. The plane took off from Cairo at 5:51 AM Cairo time on Saturday morning and ascended to 31,000 feet. Reports are that 23 minutes later, the plane vanished from radar systems.

The reports are that the plane was lost as it was hurtling toward the ground at about 6,000 feet per minute. While accidents happening after an airliner has already reached cruising altitude and speed are rare, they account for nearly 30 percent of all crashes.