Five North-East soldiers caused panic on a packed passenger aircraft with their drunken and rowdy behaviour

Their antics included shouting, abusive language and touching the bottom of a young air hostess, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

The pilot of the British European flight en route to Newcastle Airport had to radio for police to meet the men when it landed and some of the soldiers reacted violently as they were arrested.

Yesterday the disgraced soldiers were each fined sums ranging from £1,200 to £1,500.

They were in a group of 18 soldiers heading back from Belfast in November last year.

John Adams, Neil Ambler, Glen Vickers, Michael Brierly and Paul Wright all pleaded guilty at earlier hearings to being drunk on board the aircraft.

The five, from the first battalion of the Coldstream Guards, were going on home leave.

Vickers, 35, of Keasdon Close, Berwick Hills, Middlesbrough, a staff sergeant and the senior soldier among the group, was fined £1,500 and ordered to pay £150 costs.

Ambler, 26, of Emmerdale Close, Penshaw, Wearside, and Brierly, also 26, of Strawberry Gardens, Wallsend, Tyneside, were each fined £1,200 with £300 costs.

Adams, 24, of Alnwick Square, Sunderland, and Wright, also 24, of Orpington Avenue, Newcastle, were both fined £1,200 each with £150 costs.

Robin Patton, prosecuting, had told the court that almost as soon as the aircraft doors were closed, it had become clear they were "boisterous".

Two young female cabin crew who became the subject of their abuse first noticed their behaviour when shouting interrupted the safety demonstration.

Mr Patton said one woman who was sitting alongside the soldiers had described how they used foul language throughout the flight, leaving her feeling intimidated. By the end of the journey, she was "hysterical".

The court also heard how the soldiers rushed around the plane and became abusive when confronted about their actions. Many of the women on board were in tears.

Judge Beatrice Bolton said: "This is reminiscent of a school bus where the children don't know better.

"The behaviour is far below what could be expected from adults, especially adults who are serving in Her Majesty's armed forces."