Rock guitarist Rick Derringer told investigators he carries his loaded gun on flights 30-50 times a year.
Derringer, who scored a no 1 hit in the 1960s, told an air marshall he thought it was OK to carry a loaded gun onboard a commercial flight, and is now facing a criminal charge.
Derringer had taken a Kel-Tec pistol with six rounds of ammunition through security at Cancun Airport undetected, and it was only discovered after another screening during transit in Atlanta.
"Derringer explained that he was aware that his pistol was in his carry-on bag but he thought that it was acceptable to carry a pistol on an airplane," said a complaint filed in US District Court in Atlanta.
Derringer was charged with unlawfully entering an airport’s secure area.
The incident has sparked investigations spanning two countries.
Derringer took the gun through screening undetected at Sarasota Airport in Florida on his outbound journey and again passed through Cancun Airport security on his way back to the US.
"The person who missed this in the screening was terminated," said Rick Piccolo, president and CEO of Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport.
"This is one where it got through, and the person did not do what they’re supposed to do or trained to do. Unfortunately, in this business, you have to be right 100 percent of the time."
Guns are not allowed in carry-on bags at Mexican airports either, said Adolfo Castro, director of Cancun Airport operator Grupo Aeropuertos del Sureste, who has promised an investigation.
Responding to Derringer’s claims he regularly takes a gun aboard flights, TSA spokesman Mark Howell said: "While we take these claims very seriously and review them closely when possible, there is no way to substantiate the passenger’s claims after a prolonged period of time,"
