Pilot impersonator got into US Airways cockpit, police say

Philippe Jernnard



(CNN) -- A 61-year-old Frenchman was arrested this week after he impersonated a pilot and sat in the cockpit of a US Airways plane before a scheduled flight from Philadelphia International Airport, police say.

Philippe Jernnard boarded the plane Wednesday evening wearing a shirt with an Air France logo and a jacket that resembles one worn by pilots, Philadelphia police Inspector Joseph Sullivan said.

He entered the cockpit and sat in a jumpseat behind the pilots, Sullivan said. After an airline employee saw Jernnard in the cockpit, the crew determined he didn't have the proper credentials and ordered him off the plane before it left the gate, Philadelphia police said.

Police arrested Jernnard on charges of trespassing, impersonating a public servant and lying to police, Sullivan said. He was being held Friday with bail set at $1 million, Sullivan said.

A federal law enforcement official said investigators have not found any link to terrorism, but still are trying to determine what Jernnard was doing. The FBI is looking into the matter.