Two young Italians who rushed onto the airport tarmac in a bid to stop a departing aircraft last week have insisted in comments to the Italian media that they are not criminals and should not have been treated as such.

The two were arrested, taken to court and fined €2,329 each.

Il-Giornale, which carried their comments, said they had even won over some fans and there were suggestions that they should participate in auditions for Big Brother.

The newspaper acknowledged that the two had risked prison and charges of terrorism. A lawyer said they could even have been shot at by police in some airports. 

The two, Matteo Clementi, 26, and Enrica Apollonio, 23 however, said that although they were treated like criminals by the Maltese authorities, they had not done anything wrong.  

They explained that they travelled to the airport by bus, but got stuck in traffic.

They arrived late and the hostess would not let them through the gate, which had just closed. They pleaded to her that the plane was still there.

Their decision to rush to the gate, Mr Clementi said, was spontaneous and stemmed from frustration at the hostess's attitude.  

"We are not fools who would risk their lives," he said. Nor were they stupid, he added. 

He insisted that while they rushed onto the tarmac, they stayed at a safe distance from the Ryanair aircraft - whose engines were running and the stairs had been removed.

"The captain saw us, he opened the door and put down the stairs to allow us on board," he claimed.

Enrica was already on the first step when officials stopped them.

He said the two were then shocked by the way they were treated as they were arrested. No one spoke to them in Italian, no one told them what they were being accused of, and no one told them were they would be taken, he claimed. 

He said that they then realised that the could face terrorism charges.  

Mr Clementi said he was allowed to phone his mother, who contacted Italian embassy officials.

He said the two were then placed in solitary confinement.

He said he was worried for his partner. There was a 'blackout' for 24 hours during which he did not know what was happening, he said. 

They were eventually taken to  court and fined, although the court agreed that they could pay by installment.