A Jet2 passenger's drunken tirade forced a flight carrying 300 passengers to be cancelled at Manchester Airport, a court heard. Jason Mulhern, 57, of Trafford, became abusive towards cabin crew on a flight to Dalaman, Turkey, on June 22, 2024.
Manchester Crown Court was told that Mulhern's wife first made a comment about a fellow passenger's accent before he joined in and began shouting. Cabin staff spoke to them both and told them they would not be served alcohol, leading Mulhern to become 'aggressive, defensive and angry', said the prosecution.
Abuse towards crew
Mulhern told staff they were 'out of order', that he and his wife were 'on their holidays' and wanted to 'booze up'. After a warning from the captain that they would be removed if they continued, they 'disgruntledly' accepted the situation.
However, as the plane began to taxi, Mulhern shouted at one crew member that she was a 'f***ing Nazi and a c***'. He added that 'he was an adult and could do as he wished'. Betsy Hindle, prosecuting, said the 20-year-old crew member felt so uncomfortable and intimidated that she moved seats while the plane was taxiing.
"The defendant was saying: 'You can't call anyone a c*** these days, even when they are being one. If I want to call you a c***, I will'. He also said all the crew were Nazis," Ms Hindle said.
Flight cancelled
The captain was informed and decided to have Mulhern and his partner removed, to applause from other passengers. The flight was abandoned and returned to the stand, and police were called. The flight had already been delayed for two hours.
Mulhern was spoken to by officers on board and was described as slurring his words and speaking over them. When told he had committed an offence, he replied: "Oh f*** off", before telling them: "I can say whatever I want, it's a free county. If I think you're a Nazi, I'll say it."
"As a result of this, the aircraft was significantly delayed and cancelled altogether due to restrictions on safe flying hours. Three hundred passengers had to disembark and decontrol through security. Accommodation and meals had to be sought for those on the flight. Also 300 passengers in Turkey were affected, who were due to return to Manchester on that same plane," Ms Hindle told the court.
Statements from passengers described Mulhern as 'obviously drunk' and 'verbally abusive'. One heard him say to staff: "I don't understand why I can't have a drink like a f***ing adult". Jet2 has said it will be seeking a civil claim of £44,710, including costs of hotels and delays.
Sentence
Lisa Judge, defending, urged the court to consider the case at the 'lowest level of culpability' due to the lack of violence. She said Mulhern and his wife had been drinking prior to the flight and that the flight had already been delayed. She noted his character references showed him to be 'responsible and mature', and that his previous service in the Armed Forces had left him 'self-medicating' with alcohol.
Judge Elizabeth Nicholls said: "Nobody was forcing you to drink. There was no need to drink, that was a choice you took. Your conduct caused the plane to be delayed again. Your conduct alone was responsible for the loss of that day's flight. A flight that everyone's holidays had to be deferred, everyone had to make alternative arrangements, everyone had to be put up in hotels. You ruined or potentially ruined every other person's holiday who boarded that flight. That was the impact of your single behaviour."
Mulhern, of Jewel Close, Urmston, was handed eight months imprisonment suspended for 18 months. He must also complete five days of rehabilitation activity requirements, a 120-day alcohol abstinence order and 300 hours unpaid work, and pay £500 in court costs. He also has a lifelong ban from travelling with Jet2.
