A drunk passenger on an inbound flight who kicked up a commotion in midair after loudly complaining that he found hair in his food was given a suspended sentence after admitting to his wrongdoing in court.

Christopher Charles Collins, 45, a Londoner, was traveling to Malta from Luton on Wednesday evening when the rowdy incident took place, leading to his arraignment on Thursday.

He was charged with behaving in a manner likely to endanger the aircraft, using foul language and intentionally interfering with the duties of the aircraft crew. He was also accused of being drunk on the aircraft.

The court was told that the man had been drinking from a large bottle of vodka and all instructions from crew members for him to stop went unheeded.

He behaved in an abusive manner and adopted a sarcastic attitude. He was not violent.

Defence lawyer Franco Debono explained that the whole incident had sparked off after the passenger discovered a hair in his plate "and a small argument about his luggage".

Addressing the now sober and apologetic man, duty magistrate Joseph Mifsud said such issues were to be approached calmly and certainly not under the influence of alcohol, which would only make things worse.

"This behaviour is unacceptable wherever it takes place but becomes more serious when committed on board a flight in a crowded space," the magistrate said, adding that the incident could have caused serious repercussions in midair.

Upon the man’s own admission, the court declared him guilty and condemned him to a three-month jail term suspended for one year.

Inspector Darren Buhagiar prosecuted.