Drunk air passenger who spilled booze on young girl and caused flight to be grounded is jailed for eight months after causing 17-hour delay

A drunk airline passenger who spilled drink on a child and caused a flight to be grounded has been locked up.

James Rae wreaked havoc on a TUI plane flying from Glasgow to Antalya on May 24 when he called a staff member a ‘gay boy’ and shouted insults at others on board.

His behavior became so bad that it was decided to divert the flight to Newcastle, meaning passengers were delayed for more than five hours before finally reaching their destination in Turkey.

Newcastle Crown Court heard that holidaymakers waiting for the same plane home from Antalya were also delayed by 17 hours and the costs to the flight operator amounted to ‘several hundred thousand pounds’.

Rae, who had been drinking gin and Jagermeister, was arrested as soon as it landed and had to be taken away because he was so drunk.

The 29-year-old factory operator from West Bridge Street, Falkirk, Scotland, pleaded guilty to being drunk on an aircraft.

Today, Judge Stephen Earl jailed Rae for eight months, telling him: ‘The one thing that stands out in this case is deterrence, not just to deter you, but to make sure that other people understand that when you get on a plane and drunk, this is the kind of sentence you can expect.’

Today, Judge Stephen Earl jailed Rae for eight months, telling him: ‘The one thing that stands out in this case is deterrence, not just to deter you, but to make sure that other people understand that when you get on a plane and you’re drunk, this is the kind of sentence you can expect’

Judge Earl said passengers and staff on board the ‘airborne metal cylinder’ faced an almost incalculable risk.

The judge added that some may find it ‘strange’ that alcohol is being sold at the airport and on flights, adding: ‘It relies on people being mature about it, not sitting with 15 pints for four people, but that’s what some people do.

‘Of course a lot of people don’t do that, a lot of people see it as a responsible, adult situation.

‘Just because it’s available doesn’t mean it’s mandatory to drink as much as possible before the flight.’

Prosecutor Antonia Adie told the court that a crew member noticed Rae and his partner were acting “loud and cheerful” as they boarded the plane, but initially thought nothing was wrong.

However, Ms Adie said: ‘After the plane boarded and then took off, some passengers who were in close proximity to the couple began to complain about their language.

‘At this point the partner moved away from him and was visibly upset by his actions.

“The cabin crew were preparing the bar for service when a passenger entered who noticed the defendant drinking his own duty-free spirits.”

The cabin manager was notified and Rae was asked to hand over the drink that would be returned to him after landing.

He was then asked to move to another seat, but he refused to hand over his passport and started speaking more aggressively to the staff.

He was also verbally warned that his behavior was becoming increasingly unacceptable.

Miss Adie told the court Rae then called a flight attendant a “gay boy” and said the only reason staff picked him up was because he was straight.

She said: ‘For some time afterwards the suspect did not understand why he was not allowed to drink his own alcohol.

‘The cabin manager of the flight noticed that the situation was not improving and the captain decided to divert the Newcastle as the suspect was drinking and unable to follow legal instructions.’

Rae then returned to his normal seat, but his behavior declined even further.

He started hitting his head off the seat in front of him, prompting another passenger to intervene.

“The defendant also had a small plastic bottle of alcohol with him, which he eventually spilled on a little girl sitting opposite him,” Miss Adie said.

‘This then led to an argument with the children’s parents and the suspect.

“The plane landed in Newcastle around five to seven in the evening.”

Officers were called to arrest Rae and had to be taken away due to his intoxication.

The flight was delayed for a total of five hours and 23 minutes, the court heard.

With the aircraft grounded in Newcastle, replacement cabin crew had to be called to work and the scheduled return flight was delayed by more than 17 hours to allow the new crew the minimum required rest period.

Fiona Lamb, defending, told the court that Rae has never been in trouble before, adding: “He is absolutely adamant that he has not had a drink since this incident.”

Miss Lamb said that on the day of the flight, Rae was ‘quite nervous about flying’ and had only eaten chicken nachos before take-off.

Miss Lamb said Rae’s memory of what happened during the flight is “extremely limited” and that he is not homophobic.

The court heard Rae said in his own words: ‘It was horrible and embarrassing and I’m absolutely ashamed, I have no idea where it came from.

“I ruined my life because of something I can’t even remember, it’s horrible.”

Rae added that he wanted to apologize to the airline employee if he ever got the chance.