French media including BFM TV and France 3 reported that authorities were probing suspicions of human trafficking.

The flight, carried out by a Romanian charter company, had departed from Dubai on Thursday and landed at the small Vatry airport for a technical stopover when police intervened, the Marne prefect's office said in an e-mailed statement.

"The reception hall at Vatry airport was transformed into a waiting area with individual beds to provide passengers with the best possible reception conditions", it said, adding that a judicial investigation had been opened.

The local public prosecution office could not immediately be reached for comment.

(Reporting by Tassilo Hummel; editing by Jonathan Oatis)