More than 30 passengers on early Monday morning refused to get off a delayed plane in Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu Province, causing a six-hour confrontation at the airport.

Flight WH2846, carrying around 50 passengers from Beijing to Nanjing and operated by Nanjing Airlines, was due to take off in Beijing at 6 pm last Sunday but mechanical faults - possibly with some gauges - caused a delay of more than 5 hours, according to sources with the transport department under the company.

Apologies at the airport and later over the telephone still did not satisfy the passengers, said He Bin, a senior official with the company.

After the plane arrived at the Nanjing Lukou International Airport at 1:55 am on Monday, only 19 passengers - about two-fifths of the total - got off the plane, with 200 yuan (US$24) paid to each of them for meals and a taxi, said He.

The remaining majority, however, declined to get off the plane and asked for more financial compensation.

The remaining passengers spent the night on the plane and took a bus to the downtown area without reaching an agreement with the company, said He.

No financial compensation was paid to the passengers who spent the night on the plane, according to He.

Current Civil Aviation Administration of China rules do not require financial compensation for such cases, said He.

The company also suffered a "massive loss" from the delay but "we have to fix any possible faults to ensure passenger safety," said He.

No further actions will be taken by the company to satisfy the passengers, according to He.

The report said some passengers would file further complaints against the company at the local consumers' association.

( China Daily March 27, 2002)