19 French on free holiday prize

LIMOGES, France: Nineteen of the French passengers on the missing Air France plane were returning from a Brazilian holiday won by a company's sales team, the firm said on Monday.

"There was a competition for the best sales reps for the southwest region and nine of them won and went to Brazil for four days," said Laurent Bouveresse, chief executive of the CGED electrical equipment supplier.

The nine, aged between 25 and 35, were allowed to take a friend or partner on the trip as part of their prize, and an executive from regional headquarters in the town of Limoges also went on the trip, he said.