38 Firearms Discovered This Week
– Of the 38 firearms, 30 were loaded and 15 had rounds
chambered.
| Discovered in carry-on bag at IAD. |
Smoke Grenade - A
fireworks-style smoke grenade was discovered in a carry-on bag at
Washington-Dulles (IAD).
Inert
Ordnance and Grenades etc.
– We continue to find inert grenades and other weaponry on a weekly basis. Please
keep in mind that if an item looks like a real bomb, grenade, mine, etc., it is
prohibited. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in checked
baggage, they can cause significant delays because the explosives detection
professionals must respond to resolve the alarm. Even if they are novelty
items, you are prohibited from bringing them on the aircraft. Read here on why inert items cause problems.
- Four inert grenades were discovered this week. Three were discovered in carry-on bags at New Orleans (MSY) and Las Vegas (LAS). One was discovered in a checked bag at Jacksonville (JAX).
| (L-R) Grenades discovered at MSY, LAS, and JAX |
Artfully
Concealed Prohibited Items –
It’s important to examine your bags prior to traveling to ensure you are not
carrying any prohibited items. If a
prohibited item is discovered in your bag or on your body, you could be cited
and possibly arrested by law enforcement. Here are a few examples from this
week where prohibited items were found by our officers in strange places.
- A machete was discovered concealed within the lining of a carry-on bag at Tampa (TPA).
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 many
other prohibited items too numerous to note.
| Clockwise from top: Items discovered at LAX, CLT, ORF, LAS & ALB |
Stun Guns – 17 stun guns were discovered in
carry-on bags this week. Two were discovered at Portland (PDX), two at
Sacramento (SMF), and the remainder were discovered at Birmingham
(BHM), Dallas Love (DAL), Denver (DEN), Las Vegas
(LAS), Northwest Arkansas (XNA), Oklahoma City (OKC), Orange
County (SNA), Pasco (PSC), Phoenix (PHX), San Francisco
(SFO), Savannah (SAV), Seattle (SEA) and Syracuse (SYR).
Ammunition – When packed properly,
ammunition can be transported in your checked baggage, but it is never
permissible to pack ammo in your carry-on bag.
*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.
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 $7,500. 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 TSA Blog Year in Review for 2013.
You can also check out 2011 & 2012 as well.
If
you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you
can contact us by
clicking here.



