Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Philadelphia International Airport prevented a Delaware man from bringing his loaded handgun onto his flight on February 5. The 9mm caliber gun was loaded with 17 bullets including one in the chamber. An additional 17 bullets also were tucked into the traveler’s carry-on bag next to the gun.
The gun was caught as the man, a resident of Newark, De., entered the security checkpoint. The X-ray unit alerted on the carry-on bag, which was opened by TSA officers for a closer inspection. The firearm was removed by the local police who confiscated the gun and cited the man on weapons charges. The man claimed that he forgot that he had his loaded gun with him. In addition to the citation by airport police, he now faces a stiff financial civil penalty. The penalty for carrying weapons recently increased to a maximum of $15,000.
“Our TSA team at Philadelphia perform their jobs well with a keen focus on our mission,” said Gerardo Spero, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “I hope this serves as a reminder to others not to bring their guns to an airport security checkpoint. We are happy to make sure that firearms travel with their owners as long as the guns are packed properly. That begins with ensuring that they are unloaded. Any time dangerous items such as loaded guns are brought to a security checkpoint, it represents a serious safety concern, especially when a traveler claims that he didn’t even know he was in possession of his own deadly weapon.”
On February 3, TSA officers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport prevented a Fredericksburg, Va., man from bringing his loaded handgun onto his flight. The .25 caliber gun was loaded with seven bullets. The weapon was caught as the man entered the security checkpoint. The X-ray unit alerted on a carry-on bag, which was searched and the firearm removed by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police who confiscated the gun and cited the individual on a weapons charge. The man told officials that he forgot that he had his gun with him.
The day before, TSA officers at Lynchburg Regional Airport prevented an Arkansas man from bringing his loaded handgun onto his flight. The .38 caliber gun was loaded with 15 bullets. The gun was caught as the man entered the security checkpoint. The X-ray unit alerted on the carry-on bag, which was searched. The firearm was removed by the local police who confiscated the gun and cited the man on weapons charges. In addition to the citation by airport police, he now faces a stiff financial civil penalty.
Passengers are only permitted to travel with firearms in checked baggage. Firearms must be unloaded then packed in a hard-sided locked case. The locked case should be taken to the airline check-in counter to be declared.
Last year, a record 6,542 firearms were caught at 262 out of 430 airport security checkpoints nationwide. Eighty-eight percent of those guns were loaded.
Read more about the correct way to travel with firearms at TSA
