Drunk consultant used 'judo sweeps' on cabin crew after row over extra leg-room seat, court hears

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A passenger on an international flight downed rum and wine before trying to knock air stewards over with “judo sweeps” because she was not allowed to stay in the extra leg-room seats, a court has heard.

Hilary Mackay, a 54-year-old economic consultant, was travelling from Johannesburg to Heathrow in December when she became “aggressive and agitated” when cabin crew asked her to leave the extra leg-room seats, which she had not paid for.

Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court was told Ms Mackay then drunk a quarter of a litre of rum and two bottles of wine before sparking the altercation with the crew of the aeroplane.

Ms Mackay was convicted on three counts of common assault on Friday and will be sentenced next month.

“Throughout the flight Ms Mackay was verbally abusive to staff, swearing at them several times,” prosecutor Jasbir Kaur said during the trial. “She was disruptive and on several occasions placed her foot out into the aisle as staff walked past, thus assaulting them.”

Air stewards gave evidence Ms Mackay, from Kensington, central London, also repeatedly swore at them, including calling one a “bitch” three times.

After the cabin service supervisor Lucey Downey explained to the 54-year-old she would have to pay another £50 to stay in the extra leg-room seat, Ms Mackay threatened to make the flight “very difficult for us”, she told the court.

But Ms Mackay insisted at an earlier hearing she had not tripped up the staff, but instead was simple practising her “judo sweeps”.

Nevertheless, the prosecutor at that hearing argued doing a judo sweep on an aeroplane “constitutes an assault because people were tripped up”.

Addressing the court, cabin crew member Leanne Palmer described being kicked in the ankle by Mackay and nearly hitting the ground.

She said: “As I was walking I felt a kick to my ankle and I tripped, a big trip, and just saved myself by grabbing onto the lower part of the chair – I was really shocked.

Later, Ms Mackay shoved the catering trolley while the air stewards were trying to serve food and drink to other passengers.

When the plane finally landed at Heathrow in the early hours of the morning, three police officers arrived and took the consultant off the aircraft.

PC Carl Brackley said in a written statement he could smell alcohol on her breath and noted it appeared her eyes were glazed and she had been crying.

She was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and being drunk on an aircraft. Both charges were later dropped but she has been charged with three counts of assault by beating, which has been downgraded to common assault at the trial.

Giving evidence at court, Ms Mackay said the crew should have known better than to aggravate a smoker who was struggling during a long flight.

“The crew should know better than to rile the passengers – they should be there to make the flight as smooth and quiet and beautiful as they can.”

Speaking after convicting Ms Mackay, the chair of the bench Rupert Holderness said sentencing would be adjourned so the probation service could prepare a report into her.

“This was a deliberate course of action motivated by your annoyance of the cabin crew.

“Given that the victims were assaulted in a confined space we find it so serious that sentencing should be adjourned for probation reports.”