A man from Arkansas was arrested by police on Tuesday, April 18, after Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) stopped him with a handgun in his carry-on bag. The 9 mm firearm was not loaded, however two gun magazines were packed alongside the gun with 16 bullets in them.

When the TSA officer spotted the gun in the checkpoint X-ray machine, airport police were alerted, came to the checkpoint, confiscated the weapon and arrested the man. In addition to being arrested, the man also faces a stiff federal financial civil penalty. Federal penalties for bringing weapons to the checkpoint can run as high as $15,000, depending on the circumstances.

“It is a shame that not all travelers recognize the fact that guns are not permitted to be carried onto a flight,” said Karen Keys-Turner, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “It is the busy spring travel season and when someone shows up with a firearm at the checkpoint the conveyor belt is stopped until the police arrive and can remove the carry-on bag from the X-ray machine to safely secure the weapon. Bringing a firearm to a security checkpoint not only slows down the individuals in that lane, but it is also a security and safety concern. Guns should never be brought to the security checkpoint in carry-on luggage.”

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) | Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms only in checked baggage if they are unloaded and packed in a hard-sided locked case. Then the locked case should be taken to the airline check-in counter to be declared. TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its website.

Firearms are not permitted through a security checkpoint because passengers should not have access to a firearm during a flight. This even applies to travelers with concealed carry permits or are enrolled in the TSA PreCheck® program, who will lose their TSA PreCheck privileges if they bring a gun to a checkpoint.  Individuals who bring their gun to a security checkpoint also face a federal financial civil penalty.

Last year, 6,542 firearms were caught at 262 out of 430 airport security checkpoints nationwide. Eighty-eight percent of those guns were loaded.

TSA firearms catches at airport checkpoints at Pittsburgh International Airport, 2017 to 2023

Original source can be found here