A drunken plane passenger who was disruptive throughout a three-hour flight to Newcastle has been jailed.
Meredith Gibbons had smuggled his own alcohol aboard the Ryanair flight from Alicante and when it was confiscated from him, he sneaked into the galley to retrieve it and took it into the toilet to consume.
Newcastle Crown Court heard he repeatedly refused to comply with safety requests and the crew were so concerned they contacted air traffic control, who got in touch with the police. Gibbons' disorderly behaviour continued at Newcastle International Airport, where a member of ground staff had to help a PC subdue him.
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It was around 9.30pm on November 19 that Northumbria Police got the call to go to the airport. Nick Lane, prosecuting, said: "He was told by a crew member the male passenger occupying seat 5A was drunk and had been disruptive throughout the flight.
"Mr Gibbons was that passenger. He was approached by the police constable, who formed the view he was drunk. He handcuffed him on his left hand to allow him to have his right hand free to use the handrail to exit the aircraft.
"The defendant continued to be verbally abusive walking down the steps, despite being repeatedly told to calm down. At one point he threatened to 'launch us down there', which he took to mean throw him down the stairs.
"At the bottom of the stairs the officer tried to put the second handcuff on and he started to struggle and lash out. The officer was on his own and he required a member of ground staff to help to subdue him."
Referring to Gibbons' behaviour on the plane, Mr Lane said: "During the flight he had been consuming his own alcohol. It had been confiscated from him and he had gone and taken the alcohol and continued to consume it, despite being asked not to.
"He hid himself in the toilet and consumed the alcohol. He is described as being very disruptive throughout the flight.
"There's a clear risk by drunkeness to the aircraft and the safety and security of passengers and also to the aircraft itself."
Gibbons, 35, of Osborne Terrace, Gateshead, who has 26 previous convictions, including for dishonesty and battery, pleaded guilty to being drunk on an aircraft and was jailed for eight weeks.
Recorder Tom Moran told him: "There's a duty on you to behave yourself for the safety of everyone on board. You are in a unique environment where any bad behaviour is likely to cause distress and anxiety to others.
"People don't have the option they normally have to steer clear of someone who is drunk and disruptive. Somewhat surprisingly there's no direct evidence from passengers or crew on the plane.
"But you were determined to drink as much has you possibly could. You had been drinking your own alcohol you had smuggled on. It had been taken off you but you followed the crew and managed to take two cups and took the bottle in the toilet and finished it off.
"You are described as being disruptive throughout. I don't have further details about what that means but you refused to comply with safety requests and it was sufficiently serious that the crew contacted air traffic control and they contacted the police."
The court was told Gibbons has shared custody of his three children and he had coped badly with the loss of a fourth child to sudden infant death syndrome in 2019 and started drinking heavily.
His barrister said his "nuisance" behaviour was "embarrasing" and "shameful" and that it was "not how a grown man should behave on a flight" The court heard he has stopped drinking and has been having therapy and he provided a reference from a retired professor indicating a different side to his character.
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