Passengers including hundreds of Nigerians on board Air France operated commercial Aircraft from France to Lagos and Abuja have since Wednesday been stranded at Charles De Gaulle International Airport, Paris.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that many of them have to sleep at the airport from Wednesday for a day or two days owing to what the management of the airline claimed as malfunctioning of their planes and lack of aviation fuel.

Some of the passengers had left Lagos and Abuja for various destinations while many were returning to Lagos from various countries en route the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.

Air France, which said their planes could not fly, was scrambling for hardly available seats in other airlines in alliance with them to fly the passengers to their destinations.

Many of the passengers, who in their bookings had about three to five hours layover in Paris were left stranded spending 17 to 48 hours at the airport.

Some, who were lucky to get the seats in the allied airlines were re-routed and had to spend additional several hours to get to their destinations albeit after several hours of inconvenience.

Many of the passengers complained of ill-treatment and alleged flouting of standard aviation regulatory operations against the airline.

More pathetic were the vulnerable passengers – the elderly, women with children and some with disability, who went through harrowing experiences.
NAN reports that some of the passengers, who left Lagos for official engagement in Washington DC, were also left stranded at the Charles De Gaulle Airport.

The passengers, among whom were journalists, had departed Murtala Mohammed International Airport on Tuesday at about 11 p.m. aboard Airbus 340-800 Flight AF109 and arrived in Paris at about 6.30 a.m. Wednesday.
Meanwhile, attempts to get official response from the airline proved abortive as those approached said they were not authorised to speak on behalf of the organisation. (NAN)

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