THE widow of a father-of-three who died in a three-vehicle pile-up has spoken publicly of her grief for the first time.

Jacqui Eaton told of her dissatisfaction with the sentencing of school-bus driver Alan Little, who was yesterday found guilty of careless driving at Guisborough Magistrates Court.

Little, of Ravenscroft Avenue, Linthorpe, Middlesbrough, pleaded not guilty to a charge of driving without due care and attention in the accident which led to the death of Craig Eaton. He was fined £250.

Mr Eaton, whose three children Jennifer, Heather and Alex are now aged seven, six and four, died in the crash in September 2001 on the A171 at Charltons, near Guisborough.

The court heard how the 37-year-old kitchen and bedroom fitter from Surrey Street, Middlesbrough, died immediately after his transit van was hit head-on by a school bus driven by Little.

The rear of the van shot into the air and landed on a Renault car driven by Newcastle man Gary Crow, who suffered back and shoulder injuries.

PC Neil Empson, of Cleveland Police's crash investigation unit, told the magistrates that his investigations clearly indicated that Little, who had no passengers at the time of the accident, had strayed onto the wrong side of the road.

Little said he did not believe he had driven over the central white road markings, but could not be sure.

Widow Mrs Eaton 34, said: "We didn't want Mr Little locked up but if you break a window through your own negligence, you pay the price. The same principle applies with this.

"Craig was a real family man, it was him who wanted three children and he was one of six himself.

"The other day my youngest, Alex, saw an aeroplane in the sky. He said 'dad's in heaven now, isn't he? Maybe a plane can bring him down'. I just wish they could have known their dad all their life."

The court heard that Little, of Ravenscroft Avenue, Linthorpe, Middlesbrough, had never had a car accident before and he had gone on to drive the bus to a safe stop despite the accelerator pedal being on full lock as a result of the accident. He had since lost his job and suffered black-outs.

He was fined £250 and six penalty points will be placed on his licence.