LONDON, August 4, 2008 (AFP) - A British budget airline was fined 5,000 pounds (9,830 dollars, 6,315 euros) Monday for flying a faulty passenger plane across the Atlantic despite knowing it had problems following a lightning strike.

Although two engine pressure radio indicators (EPRs) were not working, Globespan Airways used an 'optimistic interpretation' of aviation rules to fly the Boeing 757 from Britain to the United States on June 28, 2007.

As a result the crew of the plane, which had 20 passengers on board, had to manually adjust the throttle with the help of another gauge during the 3,000 mile (4,800 km) flight.

Specifically the airline, trading as FlyGlobeSpan, breached Civil Aviation rules by declaring the aircraft 'serviceable' to fly from Liverpool to New York despite knowing about the fault after a lightning strike earlier in the day.

The Edinburgh-based no-frills carrier also admitted two cases of flying the plane without a valid certificate of air worthiness or a valid operator's certificate.