More than a hundred holidaymakers were breathalysed after landing at an airport in England as police crack down on drunk drivers coming off flights.
Durham Constabulary tested 105 people outside Teesside Airport on Monday as part of Operation Take Off, launched last December.
They said 104 of those tested were found to have no alcohol in their system. The one driver who was found to have traces of alcohol in their system, below the legal limit, was “given words of advice” after having a glass of wine on the plane.
In a post on Facebook titled “Holiday mode activated”, Durham Constabulary said officers from its roads policing unit headed to the airport not only to arrest potential offenders but also to “educate people about the risks of having ‘just one’ and getting behind the wheel”.
Inspector Simon Hogg said: “It is never ok to drive under the influence. Please don’t be tempted to have some last-minute holiday beers or spirits and drink on the plane if you will be driving home from the airport – life is too precious.”
The statement added that officers will be carrying out similar operations at other airports this summer.
“The message from them is simple: Don’t fly, drink, then drive,” the statement concluded.
Operation Take Off was launched late last year following the death of eight-month-old baby Zackary Blades and his aunt Karlene Warner, 30, in May.
The pair were on their way home in the early hours of 31 May, driven by Zackary’s mother, Sharlorna Warner, when 38-year-old Darryl Anderson smashed his Audi Q5 into the back of their Peugeot.
Anderson, who was jailed for 17 years last July after pleading guilty to two counts of causing death by dangerous driving, had landed at Newcastle Airport earlier that morning. He had been driving at 140mph while nearly three times over the drink drive limit.
The crash threw Zackary 50m from the car, causing catastrophic injuries. His aunt, meanwhile, broke almost every bone in her body.
Zackary’s mother Sharlorna, who suffered minor injuries in the crash, has since launched the Justice for Zackary Blades and Karlene Warner campaign, calling for motorists responsible for drink and drive crimes to be banned for life. Anderson has been banned from driving for 20 years.
“No-one should have to go through what we’ve gone through and if we can stop that next person, make them think twice, then we have done some good,” Sharlorna said after Anderson was jailed.
“We will not stop. I will fight every single day I am on this Earth for [Zackary and Karlene].”
