Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers intercepted 1,508 firearms at airport security checkpoints during the first quarter of 2023, which ended March 31, averaging 16.8 firearms caught per day. More than 93% of the firearms were loaded.
The number of firearm catches during the first quarter represents a 10.3% increase over the same period in 2022; however, the number of passengers from 2022 to 2023 has also increased. In the first quarter of 2022, TSA officers stopped 1,367 firearms at airport security checkpoints, which averaged 15.2 firearm catches per day. More than 86% of those firearms were loaded.
During the first quarter of 2023, TSA officers screened over 191 million passengers, compared to about 158 million passengers in the first quarter of 2022, representing an increase of 20.4%. The rate of passengers with firearms during the most recent quarter was 7.9 firearms per one million passengers, decreasing slightly from the same period in 2022, when the rate of discovery was 8.6 firearms per one million passengers.
While TSA will be relieved to avoid another increase in the firearm detection rate, the decrease is likely to be less than expected and certainly less than hoped for given the new penalties that were introduced at the end of last year to crack down on the firearm epidemic at U.S. airport checkpoints.
This week, a Sullivan County, N.Y., man was arrested by police after TSA officers detected a handgun in the man’s carry-on bag at a John F. Kennedy International Airport security checkpoint on April 19. The firearm was not loaded; however, it was packed alongside five bullets in a gun magazine. The handgun was detected when the man entered the security checkpoint with his carry-on items. The checkpoint X-ray unit triggered an alarm, requiring that the carry-on items be more closely inspected, which is when the firearm was removed. When the TSA officer spotted the gun, Port Authority Police were alerted, confiscated the weapon and arrested the man on a weapons charge. The man told officials that he packed his own carry-on bag and that he had no idea how the gun and loaded gun magazine came to be inside his bag. He also claimed that the gun did not belong to him.
The same day, TSA officers at Richmond International Airport prevented two travelers from bringing their loaded handguns onto their flights. Each gun was caught as the men entered the security checkpoint. The X-ray unit alerted on the carry-on bags, which required a closer inspection. The firearms were removed by the local police. A Richmond, Va., man was cited by the police after a .38 caliber gun loaded with four bullets was removed from his carry-on bag and a Montpelier, Va., resident was arrested by police after his 9mm handgun that was loaded with seven bullets was pulled from his carry-on bag.
On Tuesday 18, a man from Arkansas was arrested by police after TSA officers at Pittsburgh International Airport stopped him with a handgun in his carry-on bag. The 9 mm firearm was not loaded, however two gun magazines were packed alongside the gun with 16 bullets in them. When the TSA officer spotted the gun in the checkpoint X-ray machine, airport police were alerted, came to the checkpoint, confiscated the weapon and arrested the man.
Also on April 18, TSA officers at Norfolk International Airport prevented a Virginia Beach, Va., man from bringing his loaded handgun onto his flight. The gun was loaded with seven bullets. The gun was caught as the man entered the security checkpoint. The X-ray unit alerted on the carry-on bag, which required a closer inspection. The firearm was removed by the local police, who cited the man on state charges. The case will be forwarded to the Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney for possible criminal prosecution.
“Firearms at TSA security checkpoints present an unacceptable safety and security risk to other passengers and I am deeply concerned that the majority of these firearms our TSOs catch are loaded,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “If you carry a firearm to the checkpoint, our TSOs will see it and there will be significant penalties, to include federal penalties and additional screening, which may prolong the security screening process. You may still travel with a firearm – it just must be properly packed in your checked baggage and you must declare it to the airline.”
Firearm possession laws vary by state and local government, but firearms are prohibited in carry-on bags, at TSA security checkpoints and on board aircraft, even if a passenger has a concealed carry permit.
