SALES consultant and flying instructor Alan Marpole was amazed to find he was over the drink drive limit, Kennet Magistrates Court in Devizes heard on Monday.

Marpole, of Marten, near Marlborough, pleaded guilty to driving his company car with excess alcohol on November 3.

The court was told a police officer became suspicious about a VW Passat which turned into the village of Marten. He stopped Marpole who failed a roadside breath test.

He was taken to Newbury police station where a breath test found he had 67 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35.

Margaret Wrench, defending, said: "This is a man who rarely drinks as he is a flying instructor.

"On the night in question he had a few pints of lager and when he was told the result of the test, said he was amazed he was over the limit."

Mrs Wrench said Marpole, 41, worked as a pre-sales technical support consultant earning £400 a week.

She said he was in danger of losing his job if he lost his driving licence.

Magistrates banned Marpole, who is divorced with two children, from driving for 22 months.

The sentence will be reduced to 17 months if he completes a drink drive rehabilitation course.

He was also fined £333 and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £55.