Man pulls out machete at New Orleans airport in violent spree

This is the moment a deranged man pulled a wasp spray and machete at a New Orleans airport and tried to attack several people.

Richard White, 63, attacked two security officials and a number of passersby with insecticide, before drawing a machete from the waistband of his pants at the airport's security checkpoint.

Newly released video from the 2015 incident shows how White first tries to skip the regular line for a quicker priority security check - then launches into his attack.

When questioned by a Transportation Security Administration agent, he is seen on the video pulling out a can of insecticide and spraying all around security gate.

White pulls out the machete and appears to go into a frenzy - swinging wildly and running after passengers and TSA agents alike.

A male TSA agent managed to block his attack with a piece of luggage as White ran through a metal detector.

White chased a female TSA agent, which is not seen in the video - prompting Lt. Heather Slyve to fire three rounds at him, striking him the face, chest and leg.

White later died of his injuries. He reportedly refused medical treatment because of his religious belief as a Jehovah's Witness.

The female agent was also struck in the arm by a bullet while running from White. Her wound was non life threatening.

Photos from inside Louis Armstrong International Airport showed White laying on the floor with a machete close-by. Another showed a woman in a TSA uniform being stretchered away.

Other images depicted police flooding the area outside the terminal. Bystanders described minutes of panic and chaos at the airport in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner.

'Everyone was ducking for cover. It's New Orleans. I knew [gunshots] were coming from the security checkpoint area,' said Garret Laborde, 31.

Laborde added: 'I immediately ducked down ... Then we waited,'

He called the scene 'instant chaos' with 'screaming, lots of females screaming for a short period of time.'

Some bystanders ran to get out of the way and received minor cuts and bruises, Normand said.

Laborde said he remained down for several minutes, before police began rushing around the airport, telling everyone to get back down. Evacuation sirens also started going off, he said.