PARIS (Reuters) - France's civil aviation authority said on Friday that it had grounded a Ryanair <RYA.I> plane on Nov. 8 at Bordeaux airport as part of a dispute over money which France says the Irish airline owes.
The French body said Ryanair had to pay back money it received in aids related to its activities at the regional Angouleme airport between 2008 and 2009. The aid was later deemed illegal by the European Commission.
"It is unfortunate that the state had to take such action, which led to the inevitable inconvenience of the 149 passengers on board the immobilized plane. Those passengers were able to eventually reach their destination later that evening on another Ryanair plane, but with a five hour delay," added the French civil aviation authority.
The French air transportation regulator didn't specify the amount owed by Ryanair.
(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Inti Landauro)
