TSA demonstrates how to safely fly with a firearm
Owners must place their completely unloaded gun in a hard-sided case with padding inside, declare their weapon and check the bag.
Not again!
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently seized a second loaded handgun within a two-day span at Portland International Jetport in Maine. A spokesperson for the agency, however, has since described the repeat offense as coincidental.
On Oct. 31, security screeners at the air hub discovered that a Florida man was carrying a 9 mm handgun loaded with 12 bullets, with one in the firearm’s chamber, WGME reports. The weapon was spotted while the backpack passed through an X-ray screening machine.
TSA agents contacted police, who subsequently confiscated the firearm and detained the unnamed man for further questioning, officials said.
MAN WEARS FULL SUIT OF ARMOR TO AIRPORT
The day before, a loaded 9 mm pistol was discovered in a woman’s handbag as her purse passed through an X-ray machine. The woman reportedly told authorities that she “forgot” the weapon was in her purse, according to the The Portland Press Herald.
TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein has since described the double discoveries of the guns as purely coincidental, emphasizing that no changes have been made to the airport’s policies regarding the rules for transporting firearms and ammunition.
Not again! The Transportation Security Administration recently seized a second loaded handgun from a passenger’s carry-on bag within a two-day span at Portland International Jetport in Maine. (TSA)
“I can tell you this. We catch a lot of guns in airports nationwide,” Farbstein commented.
“Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms only in checked baggage if they are properly packaged and declared,” she explained. “Firearms must be unloaded, packed in a hard-sided case, locked and packed separately from ammunition.”
The laws regarding firearm possession vary by state, but TSA can impose civil penalties of up to $13,333 per violation for anyone caught trying to bring their weapon or other prohibited items on board.
"Repeat after me: I will not bring my gun to an airport security checkpoint," Farbstein later wrote on Twitter.
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In 2018, the TSA discovered a record number of firearms in carry-on bags at 279 airport checkpoints around the country.
In its Year in Review report, the federal agency announced the staggering 4,239 firearms seized marked a 7 percent increase from 2017.
The TSA also noted that a record number of travelers passed through airports in 2018, with 813.8 million people going through security screening. (iStock/TSA)
The TSA also noted that a record number of travelers passed through airports in 2018, with 813.8 million people going through security screening.
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Michelle Gant contributed to this report.
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