Gun capture at airports was doubled in 2020

Half a billion fewer passengers flew out of U.S. airports in 2020 compared to 2019, resulting in the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening 61% fewer passengers.

But despite the sharp decline in the number of passengers, the rate at which the TSA detected guns doubled during routine screening.

Last year, the group seized 10.2 guns per million passengers diverted, double the five guns per million passengers diverted in 2019. This was the highest gun capture rate since the TSA began 19 years ago.

Airport security screens regularly look for guns in luggage, purses, backpacks, shopping totes and laptop bags. Of the 3,257 guns seized in 2020, about 83 percent were loaded.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) topped the country for the guns seized at TSA checkpoints last year, with 220 in total. Dallas / Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Houston George Bush International Airport (IAH) came in second and third, with 176 and 126, respectively.

At the state level, Florida airports picked up the guns seized last year: 87 at Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL); 79 at Orlando International Airport (MCO); 70 at Tampa International; 60 guns at Miami International Airport (MIA); and 36 at Jacksonville International Airport.

On average across the country, TSA representatives found one gun for every 99,583 passengers diverted in 2020. In some states, the arms seizure rate at airports was significantly higher than average.

In Tennessee, for example, the gun capture rate was 65% above the national average. TSA officers in the Voluntary State found one firearm found for every 35,104 passengers diverted. In 2020, TSA scrambled around 5.68 million passengers at the state’s five commercial airports, a drop of 56% compared to the total number surveyed the previous year. But despite this sharp decline in passengers, the TSA seized more guns at Chattanooga and Memphis airports in 2020 than in 2019.

Gun capture was 51% higher than the national average in Georgia, with one firearm captured per 49,093 passengers, and 46% above the average in Kentucky, where found one gun for every 53,326 passengers diverted.

Comparing 2020 to 2019, the TSA’s capture rate was 38% higher in Missouri (one gun for every 62,118 passengers); 36% higher in South Carolina (one gun for every 63,517 passengers); and 18% higher than the national average in North Carolina (one gun for every 81,714 passengers).

Firearms – even toy or replica guns – are never allowed in carry-on bags, even if a passenger has a hidden weapons license.

A passenger cannot legally carry a gun on a commercial aircraft if it is loaded, packed in a locked case, with hard sides and placed in checked luggage. Upon arrival at the airport, that passenger must go to the airline’s ticket counter and name any firearm, ammunition and weapon parts.

Arms ownership laws vary by state and region. In some cities, local law enforcement can file criminal charges against passengers who bring guns to an airport security checkpoint.

The proposed civil penalty for attempting to take firearms on a plane starts at $ 2,050 and can go up to a maximum of $ 10,250. $ 4,100 is the first standard offense to bring a handgun to a checkpoint, according to TSA guidelines.

In addition to civil penalties, violaters can expect to miss their flight or perhaps their entire trip. They will be kicked out of a trusted passenger status and TSA PreCheck screening programs will be for a period of time, depending on the seriousness of the crime and whether the passenger is a repeat offender.

Before traveling, passengers should check gun laws and regulations at the destination to ensure compliance with local and state laws, and speak to their airline to ensure that they comply with the specific requirements of an airline.

“Most of the guns that were brought to our checkpoints were loaded, many with weapon chambers,” TSA spokesman Sari Koshetz said. “Unforeseen transmission could lead to tragedy. ”

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