The bodies of five British oil workers killed in a plane crash off the coast of Libya are due to be flown home on Saturday.

The Foreign Office has named the victims as Patrick Cox from County Durham, Thomas McNeilly from Coatbridge near Glasgow, Ronald Jarred from Middlesbrough, John Morton from Birkenhead, Merseyside, and Roy Parfitt from Lymm, Cheshire.

They were among 17 men from eight countries who died when their Belfast-built Shorts SD-360 ditched in the Mediterranean five miles from its destination at Marsa el Brega, a petrochemicals complex in northern Libya. Five men, including one Briton, are still missing.

British air accident investigators are in Libya to assist the crash inquiry. They will examine the wreckage, the twin-engined plane's data recorders and radio messages for clues to the accident.

Investigations are likely to centre on whether fuel problems caused an apparent simultaneous engine failure in the SD-360, which has a reputation for reliability, forcing the pilots to ditch in the sea.

The flight was carrying 41 people - 38 passengers, a flight attendant and the two pilots. All the passengers were employees of the Libyan state-run Sirte Oil Company.

The British ambassador in the Libyan capital Tripoli, Richard Dalton, said: "It is looking very unlikely that any more survivors will be found now."

Seven Britons, who were among 19 survivors picked up by local fishing boats after Thursday's crash, are recovering in Tripoli.

Mr Dalton confirmed that apart from one man suffering a broken leg, other injuries had been nothing more serious than a twisted ankle, a bruised back and other cuts and bruises.

'Big hearted'

Relatives of the victims are trying to come to terms with their loss.

The elder son of engineer John Morton, 55, told how his father only returned to Libya on Wednesday after spending Christmas and New Year with his family.

Martin Morton, 37, said: "He was a keen Liverpool supporter and very proud of his roots and where he came from.

"My father was a very big guy who made his presence felt. He was very big-hearted, had lots of friends and was well-known in the community.

"He was a really hard-working man who was devoted to his family."

The sister-in-law of Thomas McNeilly, Jacqueline Walsh, said: "The Foreign Office has been in touch but really we have no other details about what's happened other than what's been on the news."

She said the death of Mr McNeilly, 44, a welding engineer who had three children, was a stunning blow to the family.