TSA stops 16th gun this year at RIC

Air travel is down dramatically at Richmond International Airport (as it is everywhere), but the number of travelers trying to bring guns onto airplanes with them is up.

Transportation Security Administration officers stopped the 16th gun of the year at an RIC security checkpoint Oct. 25, surpassing the number of firearms detected at the airport during all of 2019 – despite 60% fewer travelers since the start of the pandemic.

The man, a resident of Arizona, was caught with an unloaded 9 mm handgun and a magazine with 16 bullets among his carry-on items. Airport police were alerted by TSA, responded to the checkpoint, confiscated the gun and loaded magazine and cited the man, issuing two summons for him to appear in court.

“Guns are prohibited in the cabins of airplanes. It’s nothing new. It is a law that has been in place long before TSA even existed,” said Chuck Burke, TSA’s Federal Security Director for Richmond International Airport. “When you factor in that the pandemic has resulted in passenger volume in the neighborhood of 60% lower than this time in 2019, it is an extremely disturbing to see more passengers carrying guns with them. When caught with a firearm, most travelers claim that they forgot that they had their gun with them. Quite frankly, that’s not an acceptable excuse. That’s just carelessness. This individual now faces a stiff federal financial civil penalty.”

Passengers are permitted to transport their firearms in checked baggage if they are properly packaged and declared at the airline check-in counter. Firearms must be unloaded, packed in a hard-sided case, locked and packed separately from ammunition. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should check for firearm laws in the jurisdictions they are flying to and from.

TSA reserves the right to issue a civil penalty to travelers who have guns with them at a checkpoint. A typical first offense for carrying a loaded handgun into a checkpoint is $4,100 and can go as high as $13,669 depending on any mitigating circumstances.

If a traveler with a gun is a member of TSA PreCheck, he or she will lose those TSA PreCheck privileges.

TSA officers stopped 14 guns at RIC each of the past two years, 18 in 2017 and 10 in 2016.

TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its website. Travelers should also contact their airline as they may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition.