These are the scissor wounds a crazed passenger left on the neck of a British Airways stewardess when a routine flight into Gatwick turned into a nightmare.

As the man held terrified Sandra Jeffries he claimed he had one finger on the switch of a bomb, which later turned out to be a Dictaphone.

Auburn Mason, 62, threatened to press the button and blow up flight BA8106, just 15 minutes away from landing in Sussex after taking off from Zurich.

Chichester Crown Court heard the 91 passengers were placed in even more danger when the co-pilot had to land the plane alone after the captain sat next to Mason to try and keep him calm.

Other flights circling the airport were cleared after the City Flyer jet sent out a mayday.

One passenger later told police it was the fastest landing he had ever known.

During the hearing, Judge Anthony Thorpe ordered photographs of Mrs Jeffries and her injuries to be made public to show the seriousness of the events that took place in July.

He remanded Mason, a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago, in custody until November 10 while reports are prepared.

He warned him there was little alternative to a long prison sentence for the "terror and danger" he caused.

Mason admitted communicating false information to the crew with intent to induce fear that a bomb was on the plane.

Guy Russell, prosecuting, said Mason was seen swallowing about ten tablets before going into the toilet, telling one of the four cabin staff they were for his heart.

Mrs Jeffries was grabbed around the neck when she asked Mason if he needed help. He told her: "This is a hijack."

Mr Russell said Mrs Jeffries told police she thought she was going to die. Mason demanded to see the pilot and when Captain Roy Cavendish left the flight deck he saw a small pair of scissors pressed against her throat.

Mason was also holding an object, claiming it was bomb. He shouted: "I might as well do it. It makes no difference to me. I'm dead anyway."

He told the crew his demands were in his briefcase. He asked for Amnesty International to be at the airport and, more bizarrely, that the plane should land at Gatwick - already its destination.

When the plane landed, Mason threatened to hold the passengers hostage but Mr Russell said Captain Cavendish told him: "You've got £25 million worth of aircraft. You don't need them."

He finally persuaded Mason to leave. Mason was arrested by armed police before the terrified passengers were taken off.

When questioned, Mason said he had applied for political asylum in Switzerland because of death threats in Trinidad. He also admitted he intended the cabin crew to believe the Dictaphone was a bomb.

Jamie Porter, defending, said reports would show Mason's state of mind after alleged rough treatment at the hands of the Swiss authorities.

He said they could help show the reason for his "irrational" hijack demand to be flown to Gatwick.