A pilot left his gun in the cockpit of a Delta aircraft

ATLANTA – A pilot left a handgun in the cockpit of a Delta Air Lines jet plane, where it was discovered by an employee of an airline ground.

Delta refused Friday to identify the pilot or to say whether the pilot had been punished for the Feb. 18 incident. A spokeswoman for Delta called these cases internal staff.

She says Delta is working with the authorities and will conduct its own review.

Transportation Safety says "to be aware of an incident at the Atlanta airport involving material issued by an agency," adding that the public was never in danger.

Specialist line pilots are given firearms and are tasked by the TSA to protect their planes from attack and piracy. The federal cockpit program was created following the hijackings and terrorist attacks of four US airliners in September 2001.