TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

TSA Week in Review Jan 16th - 22nd - 70 Firearms, Two Smoke Grenades and More

TSA discovered 70 firearms last week in carry-on bags around the nation. Of the 70 firearms discovered, 63 were loaded and 18 had a round chambered. All of the firearms pictured were discovered last week. See a complete list below.
Two live smoke grenades were discovered in a checked bag at New York Kennedy (JFK). In addition to the copious amounts of smoke, smoke grenades burn extremely hot and are prohibited in both carry-on and checked bags.
We don’t know grenades are inert until our explosives professionals take a closer look, and that takes time and slows down the line. It can even lead to a complete shutdown and evacuation. The grenades pictured here were discovered at (L-R) Richmond (RIC) and Seattle (SEA).
Clockwise from the top, these items were discovered at HOU, BWI, BUR, BWI, SAN and BWI.

In addition to all of the other prohibited items we find weekly in carry-on bags, our officers also regularly find firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, airsoft guns, brass knuckles, ammunition, batons, stun guns, small pocketknives and many other prohibited items too numerous to note.

When packed properly, ammunition can be transported in your checked baggage, but it is never permissible to pack ammo in your carry-on bag.

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 line 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 $11,000. 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.
*In order to provide a timely weekly update, this data is compiled from a preliminary report. The year-end numbers will vary slightly from what is reported in the weekly updates. However, any monthly, midyear or end-of-year numbers TSA provides on this blog or elsewhere will be actual numbers and not estimates.


If you haven’t read them yet, make sure you check out our year in review posts for 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and2016. And don’t forget to check out our top 10 most unusual finds of 2016 video!

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Bob Burns

TSA Social Media Team

Posted by Bob Burns (TSA Blog Team) at 1/24/2017 08:07:00 PM

http://blog.tsa.gov/2017/01/tsa-week...h-22nd-70.html