Plane sit-in after 30-hour delay

Some passengers spent most of the night at Orly

Furious passengers staged a sit-in on a French jet after their flight from Mexico arrived 30 hours late.

The French airline, Aeris, initially refused any compensation but later offered them a night in a hotel and a taxi fare.

The plane arrived at Paris' Orly airport at 2040 (1940 GMT) on Sunday night, and about 50 of the 200 passengers refused to disembark.

"Some passengers decided to organise a group. They demanded 1,000 euros per person," said Paris airport official, Alain Nutkowicz.

He said the flight had been delayed because a spare part had had to be flown out to Cancun, on the Carribean coast, before the plane could refuel.

Threat to sue

Airport officials helped to mediate between the passengers and the airline, which sent a negotiator to talk to those on board.

Some were travelling with children and most left the plane quickly.

The others finally left the flight at 0300 (0200 GMT) on Monday morning, threatening to sue - and having won from the company a document admitting that the flight had been delayed by more than 24 hours.

The crew is believed to have remained on the plane throughout.

Aeris describes itself as "the company that loves you".

It adds, on its website, that it aims to be its passengers' favourite company, offering them the best quality of service with warmth and conviviality.

The passengers' bulletin board was not accessible on Monday.