AP source: 2 held after gun found on Philly plane

PHILADELPHIA — A US Airways employee let a passenger he knew avoid security at the Philadelphia airport Thursday and accepted a bag containing a gun, which was later found on a flight destined for Phoenix, a law enforcement official said.

The employee and passenger were in FBI custody after the plane was called back to the gate at Philadelphia International, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because details hadn’t been announced.

The employee was not a member of the flight crew but worked in the airport, the official said.

“This didn’t really have anything to do with the plane,” the official told The Associated Press. “This was a guy that wanted to get a gun from one place to another … and had this relationship with someone who worked at the airport.”

The detained passenger apparently knew the employee and handed off the bag to him to bypass security, the official said.

Another traveler saw the exchange and contacted authorities, Philadelphia police said. The plane had taxied by the time it was called back to the gate and searched. The unloaded 9 mm handgun was found in an overhead compartment.

There was no evidence the person planned to use the gun on board or harbored any terrorist intentions, the law enforcement official said.

The Transportation Security Administration declined to comment because of the FBI investigation, spokeswoman Ann Davis said.

US Airways Flight 1195 departed Philadelphia several hours later, the airline said. In a statement, the Tempe, Ariz.-based airline said only that additional passenger screening took place “after a concern was raised about a carry-on bag.”

“We are cooperating with investigators fully and take security considerations very seriously,” said the statement issued by spokesman Morgan Durrant.