Singer Lee Ryan has apologised and vowed to get professional help after a drunken outburst on a plane led to him being arrested.

The Blue star, from Chatham, was removed from a flight by armed police at London City Airport last month.

The 39-year-old had been abusive to cabin crew and refused to sit when they would not serve him a drink, reports The Sun.

In a statement released by the band last night, the singer admitted he had "always struggled with alcohol".

He said:"Over the last few days, I have had a lot of time to think about my behaviour and how it affects people around me.

"As it has been well documented I have always had my struggles with alcohol and often say or do silly things as a result of that, which in turn has caused problems for myself and those around me.

"For that I want to apologise to everyone I have upset or offended.

"I acted inappropriately on a flight to London and I want to say sorry to the airline staff, everyone on the flight, as well as my band mates, my family and our fans.

"The time has come for me to take ownership of the root cause of these problems and for that reason I am reducing my schedule for the time being to seek professional help and spend time with my family.

"I am aware of how my behaviour affects others and by starting this journey of working on my mental health I hope to emerge a better person for it."

He concluded: "Thank you to everyone that has sent me messages of support and I am sorry to everyone I have let down."

The statement was met with support from his fans. One said:"Your mental health comes first. Hope you feel better soon babe."

The Met Police said: "At around 1640hrs on Sunday, 31 July, officers met a flight that had arrived at London City Airport from Glasgow.

"A 39-year-old man was arrested for a public order offence. He was taken into custody at an East London police station and was released under investigation the following day."

Ryan formed boy band Blue in 2000 with Antony Costa, Duncan James and Simon Webbe, and together went onto sell 15 million records.