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Philadelphia, PA - Authorities said they are investigating whether a US Airways employee helped a passenger smuggle a handgun onto a commercial flight Thursday morning at Philadelphia International Airport.

The incident involved US Airways flight 1195 to Phoenix, and the employee is being questioned by FBI agents and Philadelphia police.

According to police, a witness reported seeing one passenger hand off a carry-on bag to a US Airways employee, who took the bag around the security gate without putting it through the checkpoint. The witness told a TSA employee, prompting the investigation.

The flight was taxiing for takeoff when it was brought back to the gate. Passengers were taken off the plane 10 at a time and searched thoroughly. When TSA agents went onto the airplane, they found an unloaded 9 mm handgun in the carry-on luggage, police said.

The father of one passenger told Fox 29 News investigators also tore apart a couple of seats onboard the plane.

Several passengers were also questioned, along with the US Airways employee, and the plane departed shortly after 10:30 a.m.

Fox 29's Claudia Gomez reported that, during the search of all of the passengers, investigators also recovered a boxcutter that apparently got past TSA agents.

Philadelphia police, the FBI and the TSA are continuing to investigate