Andrew Burfield (50), appeared via video link from HMP Preston for a brief court hearing where he was charged with murder. Katie vanished after being seen getting into a van in Todmorden Road, Burnley.
Burfield, of Todmorden Road, Burnley, spoke only to confirm his identity during the seven-minute hearing at Preston Crown Court.
A trial date has been set for Monday, November 14th, and the defendant was remanded in custody. Katie was reported missing after she was last seen at 9.30am on Friday.
A woman matching her description left an address in Burnley that morning, travelling about 17 miles in a silver Ford Transit van to the Bolton-by-Bowland area of north Lancashire.
More than 60 specialist search officers from four police forces have been scouring Gisburn Forest in the Ribble Valley in the search for Katie.