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Ryanair steward ‘necked’ mini bottle of wine and Jack Daniel’s on flight
A Ryanair steward could face jail after he was caught on camera allegedly downing a small bottle of wine and drinking whiskey while the flight was in the air.
#UnfriendlySkyNews: @Ryanair Steward Arrested & Sacked After Downing Booze On Flight:: Sam Thompson, 26, Failed A Breath Test After Downing A Miniature Bottle Of Wine And A Shot Of #JackDaniels From A Drinks Trolley↷https://t.co/qxzjQAsrG0
/#LiquidCourage pic.twitter.com/Lu56rQrDwb— AnonymousBC (@AnonymousBC1) May 23, 2022
The on-duty flight attendant downed a small bottle of wine and drank a shot of Jack Daniel’s whiskey from the drinks trolley while the plane was in flight, a court has heard.
Sam Thompson, from Hertfordshire, was caught on camera allegedly drinking alcohol during his shift. He was breath-tested by police and arrested when the flight from Poland landed at Stansted airport on 18 May.
The 26-year-old admitted to being impaired by drink during the flight at Chelmsford magistrates’ court on Monday.
Thompson has been warned he could face jail time when he is sentenced on 3 August at the same court.
The Ryanair steward was reportedly four times over the alcohol limit for cabin crew during the flight. An initial reading of 50mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath was recorded, before Thompson gave a lower reading of 39mcg at Harlow police station.
Prosecutor Nishma Khan explained that the legal limit for flight attendants is 9mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath, significantly lower than the legal limit for driving of 35mcg of alcohol per 100ml.
Khan described how a witness saw Thompson “take a small bottle of wine out of his pocket” before “necking the whole bottle”.
Diario británico The Sun: El tripulante de cabina Sam Thompson, de 26 años, fue atrapado tomando vino y Jack Daniels de un carrito de bebidas frente a un pasajero a bordo de un vuelo de Ryanair. Fue arrestado al aterrizar tras el capitán ser alertado. pic.twitter.com/dY3lKPCCYK
— ó ✈︎ (@Conradoaviacion) May 24, 2022
According to The Sun, Ryanair said back in May that the flight was being operated by sister airline Lauda Europe, saying: “Lauda Europe has investigated a reported individual cabin crew breach of this strict policy.
“The cabin crew member in question no longer operates for Lauda Europe.”
Thompson admitted to having performed an aviation function as a member of cabin crew while his ability to do so was impaired by alcohol. Defence solicitor Michael Carroll said Thompson and alcohol are “not the best of friends”.