Grounded flight with 276 Indians leaves French airport for India

The flight behind 25 people, including two minors, who expressed their wish to request asylum in France, according to a press release issued by the local authorities in Marne, a department in Grand Est region of France.

New Delhi: A chartered aircraft took off for Mumbai on Monday after it remained grounded at Châlons Vatry Airport in northeastern France for four days because it had nearly 300 Indians onboard – all suspected to be victims of human trafficking.

The aircraft – operated by Legend Airlines of Romania – had 276 passengers aboard when it took off from Châlons Vatry Airport, 150 km east of Paris, leaving behind 25 people, including two minors, who expressed their wish to request asylum in France, according to a press release issued by the local authorities in Marne, a department in Grand Est region of France.

The A340 aircraft will have a stopover in an airport in the United Arab Emirates before resuming its flight to Mumbai.

“Thank French Gov and Vatry Airport for quick resolution of the situation enabling Indian passengers to return home & (and) hospitality. Also, for working closely with (the) embassy team, present throughout at the site to ensure (the) welfare and smooth & (and) safe return. Thank agencies in India, too,” the Embassy of India in Paris posted on X after the departure of the aircraft from the Châlons Vatry Airport at 7 pm (Indian Standard Time) on Monday.

The local authorities in the Marne Department stated that the 25 asylum seekers had been transferred from the Châlons Vatry Airport to the waiting area for the transit passengers at the Charles-de-Gaulle Airport in Paris – the main airport of France. Their request for asylum would be processed by the Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons of the French Government.

The aircraft was detained when it had a technical stopover at the Châlons Vatry Airport while flying from UAE to Managua, the capital of Nicaragua. It was detained after JUNALCO, an agency set up by France to fight organised crimes, received an anonymous tip that most of the passengers were victims of human trafficking and were being taken to Nicaragua for illegal entry to Canada or the United States.

Nicaragua over the past few years emerged as the new springboard for illegal migration to Canada and the US.

The passengers aboard the aircraft purportedly spoke Hindi and Tamil and included a 21-month-old child and 11 unaccompanied minors.

The Châlons Vatry Airport was turned into a makeshift courtroom where the local authorities brought in judges from a local court to decide the fate of the aircraft and the passengers. The judges then decided to allow the aircraft to depart for India.

Though the aircraft was expected to take off from Châlons Vatry Airport early on Monday, its departure was delayed as some passengers were not willing to fly back to India, according to a report by BFM TV, a media organisation in France.

Two of the passengers were suspected to be involved with a human trafficking network. They were not arrested but given the assisting witness status. They are also expected to leave France within 48 hours, according to BFM TV.