A Southwest Airlines flight due to take off from Mexico City to San Antonio never left the ground due to an ‘immigration issue,’ the airline originally said.
However a lawmaker who was a passenger on the canceled flight on Wednesday has hit out at Southwest for not disclosing the real reason.
State Representative Roland Gutierrez said passengers were later informed by a security guard the Southwest pilot was detained by Mexican officials for carrying a weapon.
"I think Southwest Airlines is negligent. They have to answer to 100 people that they didn’t tell the truth to," Gutierrez told San Antonio news station KENS 5.
"From a policy perspective, as a state legislator, it concerns me that pilots are allowed to travel in the United States with weapons."
The Federal Flight Deck Officer Program, which was introduced following the 9/11 attacks, allows crew to carry weapons in the cockpit to protect against hijackings but Gutierrez doesn’t believe armed pilots make air travel any safer.
"God forbid something happens to this loaded weapon while this pilot is in flight. It’s a hope that some of my colleagues on the federal level will take this as an issue that is important to their constituency, that, you know, unbeknownst to them, their pilot might be traveling with a loaded weapon in the United States," he said.
Southwest Airlines has not disclosed any more details but said in a statement: "We are aware of a situation involving a Southwest pilot that occurred at Mexico City International Airport on Wednesday afternoon. We are cooperating with all relevant agencies. We have no other details to provide at this time."
