Used Employee Card To Bypass Checkpoint At Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport

An FAA inspector has been accused of unlawfully entering Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport without clearing security ... a misdemeanor charge. A small-caliber handgun was later found in his backpack.

The Associated Press reports that Ernest Abbott allegedly used an employee access card to gain entry to the secure area of the airport without going through the TSA checkpoint while traveling from Atlanta to New York. When he went to board a plane back to Atlanta, airport screeners found a .22 caliber handgun in Abbott's backpack.

Abbott said that the gun belonged to his wife, and he did not realize it was in his luggage until it was found by the screeners. ABC News reports that Abbott did not have a security badge for LaGuardia, and had to go through normal security.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta has suspended the program which allows safety inspectors to access secure areas of airports as part of their normal duties. "The FAA will stand down the program while it conducts improved training for all of its inspectors," the FAA said in a statement. "The agency also will require inspectors to sign a new agreement that details each inspector's responsibility under the program and clearly states that any infraction related to a weapon will result in an immediate and permanent suspension of privileges and possible further disciplinary action."

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport was also the point of origin for an alleged gun-smuggling ring that was recently discovered moving firearms to New York. The suspects in that case also allegedly used employee credentials to bypass normal security.

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.tsa.gov