Police Detain Five in Air France Investigation

PARIS—French police detained five men Monday suspected of accosting two Air France executives a week ago, in an incident that caused uproar in the country.

The men, who all work for the airline or its contractors, were taken into police custody for questioning, an official at the Bobigny prosecutor's office said on Monday. The men were identified thanks to video footage of the incident that was aired on French TV.

Workers besieged Air France management last Monday, tearing off the clothes of human-resources chief Xavier Broseta as well as Pierre Plissonnier, who oversees human resources for long-haul flights. Company security guards pulled the managers from the melee with their suit jackets and shirts ripped to shreds as the crowd waved union banners and shouted.

The French airline and the two executives filed complaints with police for aggravated violence. The suspects, whose identify wasn't revealed, face up to five years of jail and fines.

Air France is in the middle of bruising negotiations with workers, as the former state-owned carrier struggles to slim down its operations and compete with more nimble rivals such as Ryanair Holdings PLC and easyJet PLC in Europe. On long-haul flights, carriers based in the Persian Gulf such as Emirates Airline have also grabbed market share on flights between Europe and Asia.

The disruption last week came after the airline unveiled a plan to slash 2,900 jobs and shutter some long-haul routes.

Air France management, whose management has received public backing from the government in the latest labor dispute, has sought to move beyond the incident, which was featured prominently in media around the world.

The airline sent out a message to passengers world-wide on Friday saying the violent acts were the work of isolated individuals and should not blemish the airline's reputation.

"What you saw on Monday wasn't the real face of Air France," Mr. Broseta says in an accompanying video.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 12, 2015 06:25 ET (10:25 GMT)

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