FRIDAY, JANUARY 3, 2014

TSA Week in Review – 27 Firearms Discovered This Week (21 Loaded)

Loaded Gun Discovered In Carry-on Bag at (GJT)

27 Firearms Discovered This Week – Of the 27 firearms, 21 were loaded and five had rounds chambered. See a complete list and more photos at the bottom of this post.

Inert 40mm Artillery Shell (SEA)

Inert Ordnance and Grenades etc. - We continue to find inert hand grenades and other weaponry on a weekly basis. Please keep in mind that if an item looks like a realistic bomb, grenade, mine, etc., it is prohibited. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in checked baggage, they can cause significant delays in checkpoint screening. While they may be novelty items, you cannot bring them on a plane. Read here on why inert items cause problems.


  • An inert 40mm artillery shell was discovered in a carry-on bag at Seattle (SEA).
  • Two inert grenades were discovered in carry-on bags this week at San Francisco (SFO), and Honolulu (HNL).
  • An inert grenade was discovered in a checked bag at El Paso (ELP).


Left to Right: Grenades Discovered at ELP & SFO
Stun Guns – 14 stun guns were discovered this week in carry-on bags around the nation. Four were discovered at Baltimore (BWI), and the others were found in Atlanta (ATL), Denver (DEN), Detroit (DTW), Huntsville (HSV), Las Vegas (LAS), Long Beach (LGB), Ontario (ONT), Portland (PDX), San Diego (SAN), and San Francisco (SFO).

These bullet-shaped knives were discovered taped inside the lining of a bag at (IAH).

Artfully Concealed Prohibited Items – It’s important to examine your bags prior to traveling to ensure no prohibited items are inside. If a prohibited item is discovered in your bag or on your body, you could be cited and quite possibly arrested by local law enforcement. Here are a few examples from this week where prohibited items were found by our officers in strange places.

Top to Bottom - Left to Right: EWR, HNL, TPA

  • Two switchblades were discovered concealed inside the lining of a carry-on bag with adhesive tape at Houston (IAH).
  • A razorblade was detected concealed in a cell phone at Tampa (TPA).
  • Three credit card knives were discovered on three separate occasions at Albuquerque (ABQ).
  • After bringing a multi-tool/knife through the checkpoint, a Honolulu (HNL) passenger was permitted to exit the checkpoint to have the item placed in his checked baggage. When the passenger returned and submitted his property at the checkpoint, the item was detected concealed inside a thermos.


Miscellaneous Prohibited Items - In addition to all of the other prohibited items we find weekly, our officers also regularly find firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, Airsoft guns, brass knuckles, ammunition, batons, and a lot of sharp pointy things…

Cheese Knife (ORD), Folding Knife (ISP), Throwing Knives (DFW)
Ammunition – When packed properly, ammunition can be transported in your checked luggage, but it is never permissible to pack ammo in your carry-on bag.

50 Shotgun Shells Discovered in a Carry-On Bag at (MEM)

Airsoft Guns –Two airsoft guns were discovered in carry-on bags this week at Pittsburgh (PIT) and Los Angeles (LAX). Airsoft guns are prohibited in carry-on bags, but allowed in checked baggage. Read this post for more information: TSA Travel Tips Tuesday: Traveling With Airsoft Guns

Top to Bottom: Airsoft Guns Discovered at PIT & LAX
Firearms Discovered This Week in Carry-On Bags
Left To Right, Top To Bottom: Guns Discovered At AUS, IAH, TPA, MCO



*In order to provide a timely weekly update, I compile my data from a preliminary report. The year-end numbers will vary slightly (increase) from what I report in the weekly updates. However, any monthly, midyear, or end-of-year numbers TSA provides on this blog or elsewhere will not be estimates.

You can travel with your firearms in checked baggage, but they must first be declared to the airline. You can go here for more details on how to properly travel with your firearms. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should familiarize themselves with state and local firearm laws for each point of travel prior to departure.


Unfortunately these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about these finds. Sure, it’s great to share the things that our officers are finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the throughput is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. The passenger can face a penalty as high as $7,500.00. This is a friendly reminder to please leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.

If you haven’t seen it yet, make sure you check out our post highlighting the dangerous, scary, and downright unusual items our officers found in 2012. The 2011 list can be found here.

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Bob Burns
TSA Blog Team

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Posted by Bob Burns (TSA Blog Team) at 1/03/2014 07:32:00 PM

http://blog.tsa.gov/2014/01/tsa-week-in-review-27-firearms.html