When I was a brand new Captain, about a year in Command, I was once on a Prestwick - Dublin flight.
During boarding one of the ground staff came to the cockpit and told me to have a look at the last passenger in the boarding queue.
The gentleman in question was wearing a pin stripe business suit, cashmere overcoat, carrying an expensive looking leather breifcase. He was immaculately groomed, and looked about 50 years old.
The dispatcher informed me that some of the check in staff had been verbally abused by him, and the same at the gate, and that his breath smelled of alcohol. He asked me what I wanted to do about him.
I had a look at this man as he stood quietly in the queue, no sign of any unsteadiness on his feet, bothering no-one. I called in the CCM and told her what the dispatcher had said. I asked her to have a very good look at him as he boarded and I told her that if she was in any way uncertain about him I'd have him off the flight before we closed the doors.
She came back to me 5 minutes later to say he was fine, no problem.
So we departed Prestwick for Dublin.
Duriing the cruise, about abeam Belfast, the CCM called me on the interphone to tell me the nice gentleman in question had just told her he would blow up the aircraft if she didn't serve him a drink immediately!
Now, of course he was joking. Wasn't he? But do you joke about BOMBS in AIRCRAFT? What to do? I could easily divert into Belfast and be on the ground in minutes! Have the ****er arrested.
Then what?
Lots of paperwork, and explaining to my FOM.
And of course the truth would out...I had been warned about his behaviour already in Prestwick!
Yet I chose to accept him! What a DUMBASS I am!
So what would you have done?
In the end I just told my CCM to give him his drink and ignore him, and let me know if anything worse developed.
We landed safely in Dublin 20 minutes later.
The bastard walked off scott free.
But I learned a valuable lesson that day, one I'll never forget.
NEVER, EVER, CARRY A MANIFEST TROUBLEMAKER ON YOUR AIRCRAFT.
If you do you might find yourself in the ****, big time, and you'll hang anyway for being so 'tolerant'.
Older, and Wiser.
