A Hampton, Va., man was stopped at the Norfolk International Airport security checkpoint after Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers detected a gun among the man’s carry-on items yesterday, December 2. The .22 caliber handgun was loaded with 15 bullets. As of October 27, 34 firearms were caught by TSA officers at Norfolk International Airport checkpoints, up from 29 for the whole of 2023.
The firearm was removed from the checkpoint and confiscated by the Norfolk Airport Authority Police. TSA does not confiscate firearms; law enforcement officers do. The case will be forwarded to the Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney for possible criminal prosecution.
“Unfortunately, we continue to see travelers bringing their firearms to our checkpoints,” said Robin “Chuck” Burke, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “Everyone should know that you cannot carry a firearm or any other weapon on a plane. This individual may have placed his gun in a case, but it was not properly declared at his airline check-in counter for the airline to transport it in the belly of the aircraft. Instead, he tried to carry it through the checkpoint and onto his flight. TSA regulations do not allow undeclared firearms to be carried on an aircraft in either the cabin or in the checked baggage hold of the aircraft. My advice is that you should never bring a gun to a checkpoint.”
This individual should have placed his gun in a locked case, properly declared at his airline check-in counter and the airline would have been able to transport the firearm in the belly of the aircraft. Instead, he tried to carry it through the checkpoint and onto his flight.
The original announcement can be found here.