TSA officers prevent Virginia man from carrying loaded gun onto flight at Reagan National Airport

ARLINGTON, Va. – Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) prevented a Fredericksburg, Va., man from bringing his loaded handgun onto his flight early this morning (Feb. 3).  The .25 caliber gun was loaded with seven bullets. 

The weapon was caught as the man entered the security checkpoint. The X-ray unit alerted on a carry-on bag, which was searched and the firearm removed by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police who confiscated the gun and cited the individual on a weapons charge. The man told officials that he forgot that he had his gun with him.

“We take it very seriously when a gun is detected during the security screening process,” said John Busch, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “Traveling with a loaded gun that you don’t even know you are carrying is a public safety concern, considering that the bag could be misplaced or the firearm could accidentally be discharged during a bag search. There is a proper way to travel safely with a firearm. Most importantly, it should be unloaded. Then it should be packed in a hard-sided locked case, and taken to the airline check-in counter to be declared and checked. We are happy to make sure that firearms travel with their owners as long as the guns are packed properly.”

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.

In addition to the citation by airport police, this individual now faces a stiff financial civil penalty, and penalties for carrying a weapons were recently increased to a maximum of $15,000.

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 Reagan National Airport, 2016 to 2023

Bringing a gun to an airport checkpoint carries a federal civil penalty because TSA reserves the right to issue a civil penalty to travelers who have guns and gun parts with them at a checkpoint. Civil penalties for bringing a gun into a checkpoint can stretch into thousands of dollars, depending on mitigating 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 onto an airplane. The complete list of civil penalties is posted online. Additionally, if a traveler with a gun is a member of TSA PreCheck®, that individual will lose their TSA PreCheck privileges.

Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality and passengers should do their homework to make sure that they are not violating any local firearm laws. Travelers should also contact their airline as they may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition.

Unsure if an item should be packed in a carry-on bag, checked bag, either or neither? Download the free myTSA app, which has a handy “What can I bring?” feature that allows you to type in the item to find out if it can fly. Or ask on Twitter or Facebook Messenger at @AskTSA. Travelers may send a question by texting “Travel” to AskTSA (275-872).