A ROWDY stag do put plane passengers through “eight hours of pure hell” – and landed the groom and best man in JAIL.
Construction boss Michael Ward, 33, and three pals downed rum and Grey Goose vodka before wrecking havoc on a Thomas Cook flight from Manchester to Las Vegas.
Exasperated cabin crew ended up confiscating FIVE litres of alcohol from the boozed-up Brits – who sexually harassed stewardesses and started a press-up competition in the aisle.
The fed-up pilot ended up making an unscheduled stop in Canada to boot out the unruly group.
Groom Ward, guests Scott Capper, 32, and Craig Hopwood, 35, were each caged for two years at Manchester Crown Court for being drunk on an airfraft for affray.
Daniel Howarth, 35, was meanwhile handed 19 months.
Prosecutor David Lees said: “The defendants were all part of a stag party and were under the influence of alcohol from the start of the flight.
“They continues to drink their own alcohol during the flight despite being told not to do so and at the start of this flight the cabin manager had even made an announcement that it was illegal to be drunk on the Las Vegas flight due to previous issues with stag parties.
“Once the plane set off they got louder and louder and it became unbearable. When they were refused drinks then were shouting screaming and Mr Howarth went into the aisle and did press ups shouting ‘boom.’
“Hopwood and Howarth started fighting each other and one punched the other on the arm. One being told the flight would be diverted one said: “Let’s cause more trouble.”
You were drunk before boarding the plane and none of you were in a fit state to be on an airplane
Judge Hilary Manley
“One woman on the flight with with her husband said the stag group had been loud in the queue when they got on board and she could see they had been drinking.
“They were filling up bottles and staff refused to serve them with one stewardesses confiscating drink.
“Their behaviour got worse and they were shouting appalling language across the plane. Ward was the worst behaved and pulled down the shorts of Hopwood who then pulled down his own pants.
“This was visible to everyone and he was smoking an e-cigarette which was confiscated. Ward and Hopwood even tried to lift the skirt of a stewardess and were throwing water at each other.
“A third passenger heard one of the defendants shouting: ‘I’ve got £300 of alcohol here.’ When warned the flight would be diverted the defendant shouted: “I don’t care.”
Passing sentence, Judge Hilary Manley told the men: ”Passengers describe a deeply distressing incident and one described it as ‘8 hours of pure hell.’
“You were drunk before boarding the plane and none of you were in a fit state to be on an airplane.
“You did exactly as you wanted and you interrupted the safety demonstration with your boorish drunken behaviour – drinking rum, vodka and the like that you had bought from duty free. I have seen images of the bottles you drank from and there was little left.
“This was an 8am flight and you created a threatening and wholly unsafe situation. You were insulting to the crew and you used disgusting and obscene language – a group of large drunken men.
“An experienced crew said it was the worst behaviour she’s seen in more than 20 years of working.”
