TSA stops three guns in five days at security checkpoints at Philadelphia International Airport

PHILADELPHIA – Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers have caught three guns within the past five days at security checkpoints at Philadelphia International Airport. The individuals who were stopped face stiff federal financial civil penalties for violating the prohibition of carrying guns to TSA security checkpoints and criminal violations.

Early this morning (Thursday, Sept. 8), an airline employee, a resident of Philadelphia, was caught with a loaded handgun in his backpack. Police allowed him to exit the airport to secure the gun in his vehicle.

Yesterday (Wednesday, Sept. 7), a Philadelphia passenger was stopped with a 9mm gun loaded with six bullets and he was cited by police. On Saturday, Sept. 3, a Horsham, Pa., woman who also was ticketed to fly was stopped with a .380 caliber handgun, which was not loaded. She was cited by police. 

The guns marked the 25th, 26th and 27th guns that TSA officers have caught at the airport checkpoints so far this year.

“Guns and airports don’t mix,” said Gerardo Spero, TSA’s Federal Security Director for Philadelphia International Airport. “Part of being a responsible gun owner is knowing where your gun is at all times and knowing that it is not permitted to be carried through a security checkpoint or onto a flight, regardless of whether someone is a passenger or an employee who works somewhere at the airport.”

TSA reserves the right to issue a stiff civil penalty to individuals who bring weapons with them to a checkpoint. Civil penalties for bringing a handgun into a checkpoint can stretch into thousands of dollars, depending on mitigating or aggravating circumstances. This applies to travelers with or without concealed gun carry permits because even though an individual may have a concealed carry permit, it does not allow for a firearm to be carried into an airport or onto an airplane. If a traveler with a gun is a member of TSA PreCheck®, that individual will lose their TSA PreCheck privileges.

Travelers are allowed to transport their firearms as checked baggage if they are properly packed and declared at their airline ticket counter to be transported in the belly of the plane with checked baggage. Checked firearms must be unloaded, packed in a hard-sided case, locked, and packed separately from ammunition. TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its website. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality and travelers should check into firearm laws before they decide to travel with their guns. Travelers should also contact their airline as they may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition.

When an individual shows up at a checkpoint with a firearm, the checkpoint lane comes to a standstill until the police resolve the incident. Guns at checkpoints can delay travelers from getting to their gates.

TSA firearms caught at PHL Airport checkpoints, 2017 to 2022

Nationwide, TSA officers detected 5,972 firearms on passengers or their carry-on bags at checkpoints last year. Of the guns caught by TSA in 2021, about 86 percent were loaded.