Magistrates' Court yesterday.

Shandon Fox was spotted by Airport staff at the runway ramp near the air traffic control tower in a clearly restricted area on Tuesday afternoon.

Fox, 24, of Smith's Hill, St. David's, said he had been having problems with his bike because it did not pull up hills.

Crown counsel Leighton Rochester said Fox, who works with Precision Engineering, was arrested and taken to the Airport Police station before being transferred to St. George's Police Station where he was held overnight.

Fox told Senior Magistrate Will Francis: "I had had a hard day and I tried to avoid hills because the bike doesn't pull.'' Fox, who pleaded guilty to trespassing at the airport, admitted he was trying to take a shortcut home.

Mr. Francis gave Fox a conditional discharge and warned him: "Avoid that area the next time.''