Friday, August 23, 2013

TSA Week in Review: 33 Firearms Discovered This Week (30 Loaded)

Guns Discovered at (L-R) ABQ, MDW, MAF, SAT, CMH, GSO, PNS, ATL


33 Firearms Discovered This Week – Of the 33 firearms, 30 were loaded and 12 had rounds chambered. See a complete list and more photos at the bottom of this post.
(L-R) Knives Concealed in Filter (IAH), Knife Concealed in Lining of Bag (PHL), Hair Brush Knife (LAX), Comb Knife (MCO)

Other prohibited items discovered –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, 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 in strange places.


  • Two kitchen knives were discovered concealed in an automotive air filter box wrapped in plastic with the air filter at Houston Intercontinental (IAH).
  • A comb-knife was discovered at Orlando (MCO).
  • A brush knife was discovered at Los Angeles (LAX).
  • A 7˝-inch knife was concealed under the lining of the bag at Philadelphia (PHL).

(L-R) Three Throwing Stars (BWI), One Throwing Star (EWR), Throwing Knives (EWR)

Stun Guns – Eight stun guns were discovered this week in carry-on bags around the nation. Two were discovered at Las Vegas (LAS), and the others were found at Albuquerque (ABQ), New York LaGuardia (LGA), Orlando (MCO), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), San Diego (SAN), and Knoxville (TYS).
(L-R) Bear Mace (EWR), Airsoft Gun (BWI), Stun Gun (ABQ), Stun Gun (LAS)
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 - real or not. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in checked baggage, they can cause significant delays in checkpoint screening. I know they are cool novelty items, but you cannot bring them on a plane. Read here and here on why inert items cause problems.


  • Four inert/novelty/replica grenades were discovered this week. Three were discovered in carry-on baggage at Baltimore (BWI), Minneapolis (MSP), and San Diego (SAN). One was discovered in checked baggage at Atlanta (ATL).

Grenades Discovered at (L-R) ATL, SAN, BWI

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…

Airsoft Guns – One Airsoft gun was discovered in carry-on baggage this week at Norfolk (ORF). 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

Firearms Discovered This Week in Carry-On Bags
Guns Discovered at (L-R) EUG, CHO, MSY, TYS, BOI, BIL, ABQ, ACT, DFW

*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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http://blog.tsa.gov/2013/08/tsa-week-in-review-33-firearms.html