A British skier has been killed by an avalanche in the French Alps.

The man, believed to be in his 50s, was found under 2.5 metres of snow after a 50-minute search, a statement from the La Plagne resort in south-eastern France said.

He was skiing off-piste when the avalanche took place, the resort added.

A team of more than 50 people, including medics, ski school instructors and dogs were involved in the rescue mission on Sunday afternoon.

The man was skiing alongside a group when the incident occurred, but the resort said he was not equipped with an avalanche transceiver or accompanied by a professional instructor.

La Plagne said its thoughts were with the man’s family.