LONDON - British supermodel Naomi Campbell pleaded guilty Friday to assaulting two police officers during an "air rage" incident at Heathrow Airport.
The model, known for her temper and frequent confrontations with her staff, faces substantial fines and up to six months in jail if the harshest sentence is imposed at Uxbridge Magistrates Court.
Prosecutor Melanie Parrish told the court that Campbell had taken a first class seat on a British Airways flight from London to Los Angeles when she was told one of her bags, along with other passengers' luggage, had not been loaded onto the plane.
She said the captain came out to explain the situation to Campbell, but that she became abusive and refused to listen, instead using her mobile phone to ask an aide for help.
Parrish said Campbell used obscenities on the phone, then demanded another flight.
"'Get me another flight, get the press, get me my lawyer,"' prosecutors quoted her as saying.
She then attacked the police who handcuffed her and removed her from the jet, Parrish said.
The incident happened shortly after the opening of Heathrow's new Terminal 5 building, which did not function properly at first, resulting in many cancellations and lost luggage.
Campbell, 38, arrived in court Friday morning in a chauffeur-driven Mercedes and was immediately swarmed by paparazzi. She did not make a statement to the court beyond confirming her name and her address, and her lawyer entered a guilty plea.
She was charged with six different offences, including attacking police officers and using abusive language to cabin crew. Disorderly conduct was among the charges. She is accused of trying to kick the police officers who removed her from the plane.
Her spokesman, Alan Edwards, said outside the court that Campbell regretted the incident and looked forward to telling her side of the story.
In the past, Campbell has been charged with throwing objects at members of her staff.
Last year, she was sentenced to a week of community service spent mopping floors and cleaning bathrooms in New York City after admitting "reckless assault" for throwing a mobile phone at her housekeeper.
She agreed to take an "anger management" course in 2000 after a similar attack on an employee while in Toronto to make a film in 1998. That employee claimed Campbell threw a mobile phone at her and threatened to throw her out of a moving car.
Other staff members have also brought charges and lawsuits against Campbell, one of the most highly paid models in the world.
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