Machete attacker is dead.

e machete-wielding man who was shot when he attacked security sta' at a New Orleans airport died last night.

Richard White, 63, was carrying six petrol bombs when he sprayed guards with wasp killer and tried to hit them with the blade at a checkpoint.

During the attack, White dropped a bag containing a lighter and six glass jars with cloth wicks in petrol.

Ocials later found tanks of acetylene, freon and oxygen in his car at the airport but say they do not know what they would have been used for.

It's believed White, who was shot three times by police, had a history of mental illness.