An airline pilot is accused of trying to board a flight to LaGuardia with a loaded revolver in his bag, and federal authorities believe he'd been flying with it for two days.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Buffalo charged 52-year-old Brett Dieter of Barbersville, Va., with possessing a concealed firearm a screener spotted before he boarded Friday at Buffalo Niagara International Airport.
The Piedmont Airlines employee was to pilot the US Airways-contracted flight to LaGuardia.
Investigators believe Dieter had been flying with the .357 magnum since Wednesday, when he flew from Charlottesville, Va, to New York City without having his bag X-rayed. He'd made seven flights since.
Dieter appeared without a lawyer in federal court. He's due back May 23. He couldn't be reached by phone.
