A plane from UAE, bound to Nicaragua, being grounded by authorities in France’s Vatry Airport with 303 on board Indians following suspicion of human trafficking.
Paris-Vatry airport is on lockdown since Thursday December 21. No departure or arrival is possible at the moment following the arrival of an Airbus A340-300 from the Romanian company Legend Airlines.
The plane took off from Fujairah airport, United Arab Emirates. it landed around 3 p.m. in Vatry, Thursday December 21, after 8 hours of flight.
It was supposed to take off again towards Managua, capital of Nicaragua, after refueling in Paris-Vatry.
French authorities said on Thursday evening that “significant arrival of foreign nationals. 303 passengers of Indian nationality are on board. Some are suspected of being illegal immigrants.” Several people are still confined inside the airport this Friday, December 22.
Access to the airport waiting area is prohibited and controlled by police. Barriers have been positioned in front of the reception windows to hide what is happening inside.
French authorities said “During this technical stopover, at the request of the judicial authority, the Air Transport Gendarmerie Brigade (BGTA) intervened and the aircraft, an A340, was immobilized. The reception hall at Vatry airport has been transformed into a waiting area with individual beds in order to provide passengers with the best possible reception conditions.”
No departure or arrival is possible at the moment. Ryanair flight FR4407 from Marrakech to Paris-Vatry was diverted to Paris Beauvais.
UPDATE 25 December 2023
The A340 is on its way back tom Bombay with 276 on 303 Indian passengers.