United Airlines passenger accidentally shoots worker

A United Airlines passenger accidentally shot one of the airline’s workers when his rifle fired while he was checking in at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. Edward Deubler, 65, was at the ticket counter when the weapon fired, and part of the bullet hit the airline employee in the leg after first striking the counter.

Sergeant Larry Dyess, from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, said the incident happened around 10:30am (local time) on Monday and that the United Airlines worker was treated at a local hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. Reports say that Deubler was given a misdemeanor summons for negligent injury. The date for his court appearance is unknown, while the district attorney’s office has declined commenting on the matter.

Airlines have their own policies about checking in firearms as baggage. At United Airlines, passengers are only allowed to carry up to 11lbs. of small arms ammunition in checked luggage. The firearm also has to be put in its original manufacturer’s box or be secured in a wood, fibre or metal box.

According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), ammunition, firearm parts and firearms can be carried in checked luggage, but only if they are declared at check-in. No firearm – not even a paintball gun, can be carried onto a plane. The firearm also has to be unloaded and put in a hard-sided container that is locked. The agency inspects all firearm cases at the ticket counter prior to giving permission for it to be loaded onto an aircraft. A spokesman for the organisation said that they are reviewing the circumstances of the incident.