A British couple have denied endangering the safety of an aircraft after they started a mid-air row on a flight from Stansted to Gran Canaria.
The bust up over a text message forced the Jet2 crew to divert the aircraft to Faro on Portugal, where Ronald St Ville, aged 53, and his partner Pauline Gordon, 66, were removed.
One witness, a former policeman, told Chelmsford Crown Court that the pair were rowing on and off for about an hour before he heard St Ville threatening to hit Gordon.
The cabin crew and pilot made the decision to land the plane and remove the couple after separating them.
The trial continues.
