French Man Arrested For Allegedly Impersonating An Airline Pilot

Mug Shot via The Mirror Philippe Jernnard allegedly impersonated an Air France pilot.

A man was arrested at Philadelphia International Airport Wednesday evening after he allegedly impersonated a pilot and was found in the cockpit of a passenger jet.

Philippe Jernnard, 61, of La Rochelle, France, was a ticketed passenger on the Air France flight, bound for West Palm Beach, Florida.

According to CBS, he was dressed like a pilot, wearing a shirt with an Air France logo and carrying a black jacket with epaulets.

Jernnard was removed from the flight after being asked for his credentials, and became argumentative, CBS reports.

It is unclear how he got into the cockpit.

He was allegedly carrying a counterfeit crew member identification card, and now faces charges of criminal trespass, tampering with records, presenting a fake ID, and impersonating a privately employed person, the Mirror reported.

He is being held on $1 million bail, according to CBS.

The case calls to mind the Italian man who was arrested after flying as a fake airline pilot in September. He told police he was inspired by the film Catch Me If You Can, about a conman who did the same thing in the 1950s.