JAILED: Joyriding bus thieves led police cars and helicopter on chase around the Black Country

Banned driver John Burton also took no notice when two tyres of the single decker were burst by a 'stinger' laid across Penn Road, in Penn, Wolverhampton in a bid to halt its progress.

The vehicle continued on the wheel rims – and even overtook a car – while listing alarmingly and leaving a tell-tail trail of smoke and sparks in its wake.

The bus – tailed from the Shropshire border by a police helicopter and patrol cars with flashing lights and sirens – careered through a red traffic light without stopping in Parkfield Road, Parkfield, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

It then went the wrong way round a traffic island, knocked down a road sign, clipped the kerb and tore off part of its bodywork in a collision with a fence suffering £10,000 damage – but still did not stop, revealed Mr Ian Windridge, prosecuting.

The Sandwell Travel single-decker finally came to a standstill in The Paddock, in Bilston, where the driver and two passengers made a run for it but were quickly caught.

Two men were seen stealing it from the company's base in Tinsley Street, Tipton, on March 30 but the pursuit did not start until 2.20am the following morning – six hours later – when it triggered an automatic number plate recognition camera while heading back towards Wolverhampton through Rudge Heath, explained Mr Windridge.

He continued: "Those on board knew the police were behind them but carried on for at least 10 minutes, going increasingly slowly after two of the tyres had been deflated by the stinger."

Neither 38-year-old Burton, of Beaconsfield, Brookside, Telford, nor his passengers – Simon Loveland, 39, from Dale Close, Tipton and Thomas Tibbs, 21, of Clinic Drive, Stourbridge – admitted stealing the bus but all pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking on the grounds of either driving or being carried in it. They had all been drinking.

Mr Andrew Mitchinson, defending, conceded: "It is only by the grace of God that serious injury was not caused to anybody."

Judge James Burbidge QC jailed Burton for 16 months and Loveland for a year. They had 37 and 31 previous convictions respectively.

Tibbs got a six-month term because of his age and single previous conviction.

The judge told them: "You say the bus mysteriously appeared outside the pub and you got on board.

"What followed required significant police resources. It was driven at up to 50 mph and was obviously being pursued by police but did not stop."