American Airlines pilot gets misdemeanor charge of operating under the influence

A co-pilot who was arrested Saturday morning on accusations that he was drunk before he was about to take off from Detroit's Metropolitan Airport has been charged with a misdemeanor.

John Francis Maguire, 50, was charged in Wayne County on Monday with the misdemeanor charge of Aircraft - Operating Under the Influence.

According to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, Maguire was in the cockpit around 6:30 Saturday morning and was under the influence of alcohol just moments before the American Airlines flight was due to leave for Philadelphia.

According to airport officials, the pilot was entering crew check in the North Terminal Saturday morning just before 7 a.m. when TSA agents notified airport police that the pilot was exhibiting behaviors of possibly being under the influence of alcohol. Airport officials told FOX 2 on Saturday that he had failed two sobriety tests, including a breathalyzer, and was taken into custody by the Wayne County Airport Authority Police.

RELATED: American Airlines pilot in custody for failing sobriety tests

FOX 2's Erica Erickson will have more on the charges on FOX 2 News at 5 and 6 p.m.