Rock musician charged with having loaded gun on Delta flight

ATLANTA (AP) — Rock guitarist Rick Derringer told a federal air marshal he keeps his gun with him on commercial airline flights 30 to 50 times a year, and was only detained last month at Atlanta's airport near the end of a trip to Mexico, authorities said.

Found with a loaded gun in his carry-on bag after stepping off a Delta Air Lines flight from Cancun, Mexico, he now faces a criminal charge in Atlanta, court records show.

Derringer, 69, told the air marshal that having his gun with him has never posed a problem until this year, when it was found at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, a court affidavit states.

"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," according to the criminal complaint filed this week in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.

He was charged this week with unlawfully entering the Atlanta airport's secure area Jan. 9.

Air passengers are allowed to bring guns as checked baggage only. The unloaded firearms must be in locked, hard-sided containers that are declared to the airline when checked, according to the TSA. Ammunition also is prohibited in carry-on bags.