After being “verbally hostile” with cabin personnel and forcing the captain to contemplate diverting the aircraft, a drunken Ryanair customer was fined.
After forgetting his medicine, Stephen Stokes, 58, said he drank half a bottle of brandy to soothe his anxieties as he traveled back from a vacation in Portugal.
At Birmingham Magistrates’ Court yesterday, he admitted to being intoxicated while flying.
He received a bill for £745 that included a £400 fine, £185 in expenses, and a £160 victim surcharge.
On January 16 of this year, Stokes, of Winchester Drive, Marston Green, Solihull, West Midlands, boarded the aircraft at Faro, Portugal.
‘He was reported to have drank half a bottle of brandy, or 500ml, and had verbally abused the crew,’ according to prosecutor Ekene Pruce. ‘The air crew constantly warned him not to be loud and violent. Moreover, he broke a glass.
“The captain thought about diverting the airplane, but changed his mind and made the landing. Officers arrived and took the defendant after discovering him to be inebriated.
Stokes missed his mental health medicine before departing, but Phillip Haycock, who is mitigating, said he believed he could still go on the aircraft since it was just a short journey.
He didn’t purchase alcohol for himself since he doesn’t often drink, according to Mr. Haycock. He is a reclusive person who stays to himself. It was a gift for his mother, therefore he purchased it.
However, at the airport, just before boarding, he started to feel pretty bad and drank some brandy. It didn’t work as well as he had hoped to soothe his anxiety.
‘Unfortunately, he must have been consuming from it throughout the journey. He remembers virtually little of what happened on the aircraft. He recalls shattering the glass. It escaped his grasp. It wasn’t like he just threw it.
He has unconditionally apologized to the corporation, and I assume he has been barred from taking any further flights, Mr. Haycock said. Due to his issues, I don’t believe he will ever again take a flight.
He feels humiliated by his actions. He has made an effort to keep it private. Not wanting to alert his family, he doesn’t want to do this.
Despite cautioning Stokes that comparable crimes had called for prison terms, the judges decided to issue a fine after discussing for a number of minutes.
The bench’s chair declared: “This offense was severe in character. You were belligerent, it was a small place, and we have no doubt that other passengers would have been alarmed.
The cabin staff had to speak to the captain to determine if the aircraft needed to be diverted because of your behavior. On an airplane, each passenger’s safety must be taken into account.
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