LEAVE THE GRENADES HOME

Loaded firearm discovered in a carry-on bag at Medford (MAF).

43 Firearms Discovered This Week – Of the 43 firearms, 38 were loaded and eight had rounds chambered.

Inert Ordnance and Grenades etc. – We continue to find inert grenades and other weaponry on a weekly basis. Please keep in mind that if an item looks like a real bomb, grenade, mine, etc., it is prohibited. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in checked baggage, they can cause significant delays because the explosives detection professionals must resolve the alarm to determine the level of threat. Even if they are novelty items, you cannot bring them on a plane. Read here on why inert items cause problems.

• A realistic replica grenade was discovered in a carry-on bag at Bradley (BDL).
• An inert grenade was discovered in a checked bag Syracuse (SYR).
• An inert grenade was discovered in a carry-on bag at El Paso (ELP).

Inert grenade discovered in a checked bag at Syracuse (SYR).

Artfully Concealed Prohibited Items – It's important to examine your bags prior to traveling to ensure prohibited items are not inside. If a prohibited item is discovered in your bag or on your body, you could be cited and possibly arrested by local law enforcement. Here are a few examples from this week where prohibited items were found by our officers in strange places.

• Credit Card Knives - 63 credit card knives were discovered this week. 11 were discovered at Tampa (TPA), 10 at Minneapolis (MSP), nine at San Francisco (SFO), six at Knoxville (TYS), six at Nashville (BNA), four at Chicago O'Hare (ORD), three at Minot (MOT), two at Medford (MFR), two at Providence (PVD), two at Rochester (RST), and the remainder were discovered at Billings (BIL), Columbia (CAE), Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Grand Rapids (GRR),San Jose (SJC), Traverse City (TVC), Tri-Cities (TRI), and Wilmington (ILM). Check out this blog post for more information on credit card knives.
• A stun cane was discovered at Tampa (TPA).
• An 8½-inch knife was detected in the lining of a carry-on bag at Chicago O'Hare (ORD).
• Three utility knife-blades were discovered inside the lining of a shoe in a carry-on bag at Salt Lake City (SLC).
• A 9-inch double-edged shank was detected concealed inside the lining of a zipper compartment in a carry-on bag at Medford (MFR).
• A comb-knife was discovered in a carry-on bag at Guam (GUM).

Stun cane discovered at Tampa (TPA).

Miscellaneous Prohibited Items – In addition to all of the other prohibited items we find weekly, our officers also regularly find firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, airsoft guns, brass knuckles, ammunition, batons and many other prohibited items too numerous to note.

Stun Guns – 16 stun guns were discovered this week in carry-on bags around the nation: Three were discovered at San Francisco (SFO), two at Denver (DEN), and the remainder were discovered at Baltimore (BWI), Chicago Midway (MDW), Dallas Love (DAL), Sacramento (SMF), Baltimore (BWI), Denver (DEN), Tampa (TPA), El Paso (ELP), Las Vegas (LAS), Nashville (BNA), Orange County (SNA), Pensacola (PNS), Phoenix (PHX), and Sacramento (SMF).

Airsoft Guns – An Airsoft gun was discovered this week in a carry-on bag at the Denver (DEN) airport. Airsoft guns are prohibited in carry-on bags, but allowed in checked baggage. Airsoft grenades are not permitted in checked or carry-on bags. Read this post for more information: TSA Travel Tips Tuesday: Traveling with Airsoft Guns

Firearms Discovered at: (Left - Right / Top to Bottom) FLL, HOU, TYS, ATL, SPS & FNT

*In order to provide a timely weekly update, this data is compiled from a preliminary report. The year-end numbers will vary slightly from what is reported in the weekly updates. However, any monthly, midyear or end-of-year numbers TSA provides on this blog or elsewhere will be actual numbers and not estimates.

You can travel with your firearms in checked baggage, but they must first be declared to the airline. You can go here for more details on how to properly travel with your firearms. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should familiarize themselves with state and local firearm laws for each point of travel prior to departure.

Unfortunately these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about these finds. Sure, it's great to share the things that our officers are finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the line is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. The passenger can face a penalty as high as $7,500. This is a friendly reminder to please leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.

If you haven't seen it yet, make sure you check out our TSA Blog Year in Review for 2013 . You can also check out 2011 & 2012 as well.

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Bob Burns

TSA Blog Team