Although the average traveler should know by now that flying with guns in your carry-on bag is not going to fly with the Transportation Security Administration, the number of people trying to bring firearms through airport security is going up every year, the agency says in a report today.
In 2014, a record 2,212 firearms were seized at the nation’s airports while screening screening more than 653 million passengers, the TSA’s reports says. Of those more than 2,000 firearms, 83% of those were loaded.
That’s a 22% increase over 2013, when 1,813 firearms were taken from travelers’ carry-ons. The TSA says the number of firearms seized at airport security has been going up almost every year since 2005.
Airports with the most gun activity include:
1.Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW): 120
2. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL): 109
3. Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX): 78
4. George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH): 77
5. Denver International Airport (DEN): 70
“In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items,” the TSA said in its blog reviewing the report’s results.
Beyond just small firearms, a grenade and an unloaded assault rifle with three loaded magazines were discovered last year, along with a long list of other prohibited items.
Previously in notable TSA finds: TSA Finds Large Knife Ruining A Batch Of Perfectly Good Enchiladas At California Airport; Reminder: TSA Has Magic Machines That Will Find Gun Parts Hidden In A PlayStation 2
by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist