Blue star Lee Ryan has been handed a 12-month suspended prison sentence for racially aggravated common assault by beating and behaving in an abusive way towards a cabin crew member.
The singer, 40, was "slurring his words and staggering around" after drinking a whole bottle of port before a British Airways flight from Glasgow to London City Airport on 31 July last year.
He had earlier pleaded guilty to being drunk on an aircraft, for which he was handed a four-month jail term to run concurrently.
A hearing in January was told the singer was refused more alcohol on the plane after drinking a whole bottle of port. After being told to return to his seat, Ryan made comments about attendant Leah Gordon's looks before grabbing her wrists.
Police footage showed Ryan "snarling" and swearing after allegedly trying to bite a PC Bryett as officers attempted to arrest him on his arrival at the airport.
He was found guilty at Ealing Magistrates' Court in the UK in January of racially aggravated common assault by beating and behaving in an abusive way towards the cabin crew member.
As he sentenced him at Isleworth Crown Court in the UK, Judge Nicholas Wood said while the incident only lasted 10 or 15 minutes: "It seemed like a lifetime for everybody on that plane."
He ordered the singer to pay £2,500 (€2,900) compensation to Gordon, £750 (€870) to Jade Smith, another member of the cabin crew, and £510 (€590) in costs.
Having seen psychological assessments of Ryan, and heard he has high functioning autistic spectrum disorder, Judge Wood concluded he did not pose an ongoing risk to the public.
Ryan paced backwards and forwards around the dock before the sentencing hearing began on Thursday, and covered his head with a jacket as he entered the court.
Source: Press Association
