Airlines may be facing a bumpy ride due to the global oil crisis – but it was fuel of a different kind that was very much on the minds of passengers at Manchester Airport.

It seems that for thousands of travellers, it is never too early to celebrate the start of their holidays – leading to a daily stampede to the bar starting as eye-waveringly early as 3.30am.

Critics claim that, with no apparent concern about supplies running dry, many are on a mission to get 'tanked up' as quickly as possible, fuelling bad behaviour on planes.

This week, Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary called for a ban on airport pubs serving alcohol before early morning flights – along with a two-drink limit imposed at other times.

He said it would help tackle the growing menagerie of booze-fuelled bad behaviour on planes.

Sir Tim Martin, the boss of pub giant JD Wetherspoon, hit back insisting it had 'never been suggested' his customers cause disruption on flights and said introducing a limit at airports would mean passengers would have to be breathalysed.

It has also been claimed that such a move would deprive citizens of fundamental civil liberties, as well as put an end to what has become a great British tradition.

Two years ago it emerged that one of Sir Tim's airport pubs – The Windmill at Stansted Airport – had become its busiest outlet in the UK.

At the time, the pub, which has 550 seats, was raking in £800,000-a-week in the peak season.

Wetherspoons, which has eight airport pubs, is set to open its latest outlet this year at Manchester Airport's state-of-the art Terminal Two – which underwent a £1billion transformation in 2021.

One of Ryanair's former pilots identified Manchester and Glasgow as having the worst routes for drunk British passengers, often flying to party destinations like Ibiza and Majorca.

Part of the issue is that airside bars in the UK are not required to follow restrictions on opening hours which apply to other venues selling alcohol.

However, being drunk on a plane is a criminal offence in the UK and can be punished by a fine of up to £5,000 and two years' imprisonment.

Amid the growing debate, the Daily Mail headed to the frontline, into the zone that has been described as 'a no man's land between real life and holiday, where the rules are slightly different'.

At 3.30am we discovered that the two main airside pubs at Terminal Two had already opened their doors, as thousands of passengers worked their way through airport security.

By 3.52am, there was just a handful of customers at the Amber Alehouse and the nearby Bridgewater Exchange, which has its own microbrewery and became the first UK pub to have its own airside brewery.

These pubs operate differently from normal hostelries and are run more like restaurants.

Customers are directed to their tables by staff who hand them food menus.

Orders can be taken by using QR codes on the table, although drinks can be bought at the bar.

At 4.13am, warehouse worker Lewis Williams, 21, and his gas engineer friend Finn Lewis-John, 18, were making preparations ahead of jetting off to Ibiza on a 6am Tui flight.

The pair, from Wrexham, had been given a lift to the airport by Finn's aunt before heading straight for the Bridgewater Exchange pub to help set themselves up for five days of partying in Ibiza.

At this point the pair had each downed a couple of £7.80 pints of Peroni lager and Lewis had set Michael O'Leary in his sights over his comments.

He said: 'Michael O'Leary should have a word with himself. He's an idiot and I don't care if he bans me for life for saying so.

'If he was not a multi-millionaire and was more like us, he might not look down on his customers so much.

'All he's worried about is the money. He doesn't want people to get on his flight when they have already had a few drinks – he wants to sell alcohol to them on his plane.

'How would he look at this situation if he was one of us? He needs to come back down to earth.'

Describing his preparation for the trip, Finn said: 'We had a couple of beers before we left at 1am. We got here quicker than we thought and as soon as we got through security we headed straight for the bar.'

But he added: 'We're certainly going to enjoy ourselves but I can't go too crazy as I just started a new job two weeks ago and they do random drink and drugs tests.'

At 4.23am, bride-to-be Olivia Boardman, 25, from Manchester, and her hen party were getting themselves established around a couple of tables in a far corner of the pub.

The group, made up of a total of eight friends and relatives including her mother, were clearly excitedly looking forward to their cowgirl themed hen party in Ibiza.

Before their 6.10am Jet2 flight, Olivia, who works in logistics, started with a bottle of mineral water, but added: 'I'm waiting for my Prosecco – we are on a hen do.'

Her sister Ava, 27, who helped organise the trip, said: 'I've ordered a pint of Peroni.

'I hadn't heard anything about restricting the amount you can drink before you fly. You should just have fun – that's what we're doing.

'We're not going to get carried away. You've got to be able to control yourself and not go too far.'

By 5am, the Bridgewater Exchange, which has capacity for around 400 travellers, was packed with ever growing queues snaking into the concourse outside its entrance

At 5.25am, Mark Davies, 50, who works for a breakfast cereal manufacturer, was starting on his second £7.50 pint of Magners cider.

He was booked on a 7am Jet2 flight to Alicante with his nurse partner Hayley Roberts on a trip to celebrate her 50th birthday, which is on Thursday, with a party of 10 including her two children and their grandchildren.

The group are staying at a resort near Benidorm. After arriving at the airport shortly after 3am, the couple cleared security at 3.50am before heading to the bar shortly afterwards.

Airside pub customers, who represent a captive audience, seem to be prepared to pay over-inflated prices for their beer, wine and spirits.

Although Mark, like many other customers, drew the line when it came to forking out for breakfasts, snacks and meals, and declined to fork out £17 for a full English breakfast.

Mark, from Wrexham, said of his early start: 'I think it's a cultural thing that you go to the airport and you drink, but I'm 50 years old and I don't think I've thought "Right I've got to get off my face at the airport" – even when I was a young man.

'I agree with Michael O'Leary to a degree. You see shocking videos of on social media and planes being diverted. The last thing you want is trouble when you're up in the air.

'I only ever saw something happen once on a flight back from Amsterdam. We were taxiing on the runway and some lads started arguing with the air hostesses.

'In the end we taxied back into the slot and the police came and took these three lads off the plane.'

Yards away, at the Amber Alehouse, there were similar scenes as customers formed into orderly queues outside.

One woman passenger said: 'There is something magical about starting your holiday with an early morning drink.

'It's just something you would never otherwise do. It's a small minority who ruin it for everyone else.

'If it was all regimented and they start monitoring you, that would take away the fun of it.'

At 7am, tiler Andrew Taylor, 45, from Salford, was getting ready to head to the departure gate with his father William, 71, and brothers Adam, 42, and Daniel, 34.

The group – who were all drinking beer apart from Andrew – were booked on a flight to Krakow in Poland.

Andrew said of O'Leary's comments: 'I'm not worried – I'm teetotal. I've been getting myself tanked up on cups of tea and orange juice.'

Explaining his personal situation he said: 'I'm in rehab – I'm an addict.

'I could have a drink now and I'd ruin the entire holiday for everyone – I'd be that guy on the plane.'

At 7.19am, civil servant Claire Travis, from Wrexham, was finishing off a £30 bottle of white wine she had shared with her best friend, hospital worker best friend Samantha, 52.

They each paid £952 for a week-long all-inclusive holiday at five star resort in Cape Verde – leaving their families behind back home.

Mother-of-two Claire said: 'This is where the holiday starts. At the end of the day you've saved your money all year for this and you want to make the most of it.

'We don't drink at home but we're on holiday and it's a special occasion – you're only 50 once.'

Back at the Exchange, at 7.43am, railway worker Michael Rankin, 36, was among a group of four pals from Doncaster sporting comedy black wigs who were downing pints ahead of catching an 8.55am flight to Faro in Portugal.

With his friends, plumber Liam John, 37, Barry John, 35, and Calum Stork, 35, the group were heading out to meet the 50-strong group of stag do revellers who are staying in the holiday resort of Albufeira for three nights.

Michael said: 'We'd all look ridiculous if we were heading off on a stag do and all sitting round drinking cups of tea instead of having a pint.

'The boss of Ryan Air has got enough money already and he should stop penny-pinching as that is what this is all about.

'He's being a bit rude. He doesn't seem to have a very high opinion of his customers and he should know that the customer is always right.

'He should let the lads have fun – that's what his priority should be.'

Shortly afterwards, a second bride-to-be, Hayley Bryan, 40, was clearly in a celebratory and happy mood, as her 19-strong group were getting ready to party in the Algarve.

As the group from Stoke-on-Trent had been downing £37 bottles of Prosecco, civil servant Hayley Bryan, branded O'Leary 'boring' saying: 'I'm getting married – it only happens once in a lifetime and I've waited a long time.

'We're just getting the party started. There's a group of 19 of us, all family and friends and colleagues, what would you expect. Besides that I think that everybody should have a drink at the airport.'

After the peak rush of a flurry of early morning flights, things began to quieten down after 8am – although pubs remained busy.

Of the numerous passengers we spoke to, most insisted an early morning airport drink was the signal to kick off their holiday.

Some insisted having a couple of drinks 'calmed their nerves' or helped them to sleep on their flights before the real party begins when they arrive at their destination.

Others, however, appeared to be hell-bent on setting off on a jet-propelled mission – without caring too much about where they were going to finally come down to land.