CRIME
Former Delta Co-Pilot Indicted For Allegedly Threatening Captain With Gun Midflight
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A former Delta Air Lines co-pilot was indicted by a Utah grand jury last month for allegedly threatening to shoot the captain of a commercial flight if he diverted the flight for a passenger who may have been experiencing a medical emergency, federal officials said Tuesday.
The Department of Transportation’s Office of the Inspector General on Tuesday announced that a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah indicted Jonathan J. Dunn on Oct. 18 for interfering with the crew of a commercial airline flight.
The incident occurred in August of last year, and Dunn was the first officer on the flight. According to the inspector general’s office, Dunn was authorized to carry a firearm in the cockpit as part of the Transportation Security Administrations Federal Flight Deck Officer program.
Under the program, airline pilots who undergo special training are authorized by the TSA to be armed on domestic flights, in order to defend against hijacking, and are provided a TSA-issued weapon.
The indictment alleges that after a disagreement about a potential flight diversion due to a passenger medical event, Dunn told the Captain they would be shot multiple times if the Captain diverted the flight, the inspector general said in a statement.
The DOT conducted the investigation in collaboration with the FBI and the Federal Aviation Administration.
The inspector general’s statement did not specify the flight number, origination point, or destination.
Delta has said that Dunn is no longer employed by the airline. His arraignment was scheduled for Nov. 16.
Last month, off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot Jospeh Emerson allegedly tried to shut off a commercial plane’s engines during a flight from Everett, Wash., to San Francisco, Calif. Emerson was charged with 83 counts of attempted murder.
TMX contributed to this article.
