Jonathan Dunn a pilot with Delta Air Lines is alleged to have used a gun to “assault and intimidate” the captain of an aircraft and threatening to shoot them multiple times if the flight was diverted due to a passenger suffering a medical emergency.
Reports indicate that Dunn was indicted by a grand jury at the US District Court for the District of Utah changed with interfering with the crew of a commercial airline flight on that took place in August last year.
In a statement from the Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General says the indictment alleges that, on or about August 22, 2022, Jonathan Dunn, the crew’s First Officer, interfered with the performance of a crew member by using a dangerous weapon to assault and intimidate the Captain. Dunn was authorized to carry a firearm through the Transportation Security Administration’s Federal Flight Deck Officer programme. The programme allows a number of commercial airline pilots and flight crew of commercial aircraft to fly with concealed weapons and act as law enforcement officers to defend the flight deck of aircraft against acts of criminal violence or air piracy. The TSA hasn't stated how many FFDOs there are, however, the programme's budget last year was $20,751,000.
Delta has confirmed to local media that Dunn worked for the company at the time of the incident but was no longer employed by them and has since refused to comment because of the "ongoing aviation authority investigation of this incident”.