TSA stopped a man from Westmoreland County, Pa., with this loaded handgun among his carry-on items at the Pittsburgh International Airport security checkpoint on Thursday, Oct. 5. (TSA photo)
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Pittsburgh International Airport prevented a Westmoreland County, Pa., man from carrying his handgun through the security checkpoint early this morning.
The man, a resident of Greensburg, Pa., was carrying a .22 caliber pistol loaded with five bullets plus an additional five bullets in his carry-on bag.
The good catch followed the detection of three handguns that were caught last week, bringing the total number of guns stopped by TSA officers at the airport checkpoints to 34 so far this calendar year. That’s just one shy of the record number of 35 guns that were caught in 2019 with three months remaining in 2023.
“Once again I find myself needing to point out that there is absolutely no excuse for bringing a gun to one of our checkpoints,” said Karen Keys-Turner, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “Firearms should never be brought to the security checkpoint in carry-on luggage and responsible gun owners know that,” she said. “Bring a gun to our checkpoint and you will face a stiff federal financial civil penalty that could cost you thousands of dollars. Make no mistake, we take this very seriously and there is a high cost for gun owners who think that they can waltz through a checkpoint and onto a plane with a gun.”
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 airport security checkpoints nationwide. During the first nine months of 2023, TSA officers detected more than 5,000 guns at checkpoints across the country and the agency is on track to surpass the record-setting number of guns caught in 2022.
TSA firearms catches at airport checkpoints at Pittsburgh International Airport, 2017 to 2023
| Year | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
| Pittsburgh International Airport | 32 | 34 | 35 | 21 | 32 | 26 | 34 |
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.
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).