Two drunken Research In Motion employees forced an Air Canada flight from Toronto to Beijing to make an unscheduled stop in Vancouver, disrupting travel plans of more than 300 people.

George Campbell, 45, of Conestogo, Ont., and Paul Alexander Wilson, 38, of Kitchener, pleaded guilty to one charge of mischief in Richmond Provincial Court on Wednesday.

They were each given suspended sentences and one year’s probation, and ordered to pay restitution to Air Canada of $35,878 each, and barred from having any contact with Air Canada crews or flying that carrier during the probation period.

RIM issued a statement saying: “Based on the limited information available at this time, RIM has suspended the individuals involved pending further investigation.”

The incident began Monday night aboard Air Canada Flight 31, a non-stop flight from Toronto to Beijing, where the unruly passengers consumed “too much alcohol” and “disobeyed” the flight crew, according to Richmond RCMP.

The Boeing 777 aircraft, carrying 314 passengers and 17 crew members was already north of Alaska, when the pilots decided to turn the plane around to unload the passengers.

After forcibly restraining the two men, the crew notified the RCMP of the decision at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, and the plane landed at about 10:21 p.m. in Vancouver

Richmond RCMP officers were waiting at the airport to arrest the men: “They weren’t necessarily fighting. They were just simply being unruly in their drunken state,’ said Cpl. Sherrdean Turley in an interview. “And in that state, they just simply weren’t listening to any direction that the flight crew was giving them.”

Because the daily direct flight between Toronto and Beijing extends for 13 hours, any unscheduled stop would put the flight crew — four pilots and 13 flight attendants — beyond the number of hours they are allowed to fly for health and safety reasons.

But the airline could not immediately get a flight crew to the Vancouver airport, so passengers were put up in a hotel overnight and then flew on to Beijing on Tuesday, arriving 18 hours late.

The RCMP’s Turley praised the restitution order. “It’s really good. I can’t begin to imagine what this cost the company,” she said.

Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick added the crew followed standard procedures to maintain the safety and security of passengers and the flight.

“Safety and security are always paramount, so when the pilot feels that is compromised they will act,” he said.

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Another passenger aboard the plane says Campbell and Wilson were fighting with the flight attendants, prompting the crew to subdue them.

With files from The Canadian Press

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