For better or worse, the life of a rock star involves plenty of time spent on aeroplanes. Hence, it’s not altogether unsurprising that quite a few of them have caused a ruckus while on planes over the years. Perhaps it’s because they’re not allowed to smoke, perhaps it’s because they’ve indulged in a bit too much of the free booze offered on board, or perhaps simply because they are on an aeroplane and that leads to misbehaviour – count down with us as we remember some of our favourite rock star aeroplane dummy spits.


Courtney Love

Mrs Kurt Cobain was banged up after putting her feet up on the bulkhead of a plane from Brisbane to Melbourne in 1995. Asking the businessmen in her cabin whether “your feet are offending passengers” she further asked “Excuse me. Are my feet offending anybody?” No-one replied but the hostie threatened to have Love arrested when the plane landed in Melbourne. Love’s charming reply was “Go the f— ahead. You are one mean fucking stewardess. You are the nastiest stewardess I have met. I think you need therapy.” Police promptly arrested and charged her on landing.


Ian Brown

The former Stone Roses front man served several months in jail for threatening to ‘chop off the hands’ of a stewardess who had displeased him on a British Airways Paris to Manchester flight in 1998.


Jim Morrison

The Doors front man was arrested in Phoenix Arizona in November 1969 for drunk and disorderly conduct aboard a plane after he and actor Tom Baker had been hitting the piss and annoying passengers and stewardesses on their way to a Rolling Stones concert. The pair spent the night sobering up in jail and secured release on $2,500 bail.


Izzy Stradlin

The former Guns n’ Roses rhythm guitarist was sentenced to a year’s probation after drunkenly urinating in the aisle on a flight to LA in 1989.


Liam Gallagher

The former Oasis front man caused a major media kerfuffle while on a flight to Perth in 1998 for Oasis’ debut Australian show. He was banned from airline Cathay pacific for life after smoking on board, hassling airline crew and generally misbehaving. Of the incident, he infamously said he’d “rather walk” than fly to Australia on Cathay Pacific again.


Peter Buck

Guitarist for REM, Peter Buck, was arrested in 2001 at London’s Heathrow Airport following a flight from Seattle for “criminal damage, being drunk on an aircraft, two counts of common assault on air crew” and a “public order offence” following incidents aboard a British Airways flight.


Kasabian

Apparently in 2007 Kasabian had a little scrap with long forgotten London indie band The Holloways while on a flight to Japan’s SummerSonic Festival over who was entitled to sit in business class.


Snoop Dogg

No doubt craving a bit of the old green stuff, Tha Doggfather was arrested AFTER he’d got off a flight at London’s Heathrow Airport where he and his crew were held for being drunk and disorderly. He ended up being refused entry to the UK for several years as a result.


Diana Ross

The old saying in the music biz says ‘Call her Miss Ross’. Clearly several Heathrow security guards felt that she deserved a title more like ‘bitch’ after they arrested her for carrying on like a diva on a flight arriving at the airport.


Bjork

Okay so she was in an airport having just got off a plane at the time, but Icelandic songstress Bjork’s outburst against a television reporter in 1996 is a rock n’ roll classic. Check out the footage below


[include file=”slideitem.php”]

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine