A former United Airlines flight attendant was taken for treatment after consuming 10 times the legal alcohol limit on a flight, a court heard.
Margit Lake, 56, was treated by paramedics at Heathrow after the Boeing 777 she was working on arrived from San Francisco on 17 October.
The cabin crew member was later taken to the hospital. It is alleged that her blood alcohol level was 216mg, more than 10 times the legal limit of 20mg to work on a plane.
Appearing at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court, Ms Lake was told by the prosecutor that her consumption of alcohol was an “obvious risk to herself and other passengers”, The Sun reported.
The California-based flight attendant was accused of drinking multiple miniature bottles that she had brought onto the aircraft ahead of the 10-hour flight.
Ms Lake had a career with United spanning 26 years, but had handed in her registration almost immediately after the incident.
Her defence said that she had been feeling “isolated” and “dealing with grief” before the flight.
“She had the alcohol because she needed to calm down,” solicitor Ben Lansbury said.
“It was something of a shock to her as to what happened,” he added. “She deeply regrets what happened.”
Paramedics “smelled alcohol on her breath” when they boarded the plane at Terminal 2 and found she had low blood pressure, the court heard.
Ms Lake admitted to performing an aviation function while under the influence of alcohol, the newspaper reported.
However, the court also heard that there was no disruption to the flight despite her consumption.
Instead of receiving a possible prison sentence, Ms Lake was told to pay a £1,461 fine, a £584 victim surcharge, and £85 in court costs.
The incident came only a month after an air steward working for Scandinavian Airlines admitted trying to board a flight at Heathrow while drunk and more than 12 times over the limit.
Jessica Kostakopoulou, 43, was stopped by security in Terminal 2 on 22 March after she “appeared unsteady on her feet and slurred her words” and smelled of alcohol.
In September, a magistrates’ bench fined the defendant £623, including a victim surcharge and legal costs, to be paid in monthly instalments, having found her remorse to be “genuine”.
The Independent has contacted United and Heathrow airport for comment.
Read more: Drunk air steward tried to board Heathrow flight while 12 times over legal limit
