Asks For A Band-aid, Gets A Ride To Medical Center Instead

A passenger onboard a US Airways flight, who asked a flight attendant for a band-aid to cover a gunshot wound, missed his connecting flight in Charlotte... but got a ride to the hospital instead.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police say William J. Notaro told them he was shot three times during a domestic dispute, but boarded the plane in Tampa, FL anyway.

The plane was headed to Albany, NY with a layover in Charlotte, according to a WCNC-6 report. Notaro was detained by airport personnel when his bleeding became noticeable while waiting for his connecting flight.

A medic responded to an airline call and took him to Carolinas Medical Center, where his condition is unknown as of late Saturday night.

Medic said the man's condition was "life-threatening," but video aired on WCNC showed Notaro smiling as he was being wheeled out of the airport on a stretcher.

The whole event made other passengers nervous. "How did he manage without any kind of medical supervision?" said Carol Maynard.  "That's bizarre."

"It's very unusual, I've never heard anything like that before," said Albert Harris.  "It's only in the movies, maybe it'll make a good movie."

It is still a puzzle how the man passed through airport security in Tampa, FL.

FMI: www.usairways.com