NORFOLK, Va.-Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers prevented a man from bringing a loaded handgun on board a plane at the Norfolk International Airport checkpoint on Sunday, Feb. 12.
The man was stopped by TSA officers at the checkpoint with a.32 caliber handgun. It was loaded with seven bullets, including one in the chamber.
TSA officers detected the gun and ammunition as the man was entering the airport checkpoint. The TSA officer who was staffing the checkpoint X-ray machine detected the firearm as it passed along the conveyor belt inside the man’s bag. TSA officers immediately contacted the Norfolk Airport Authority Police, which responded to the checkpoint.
It was the second gun caught at a Norfolk checkpoint so far in 2017. In 2016, TSA officers detected 14 guns at the airport’s checkpoints.
There is a right way to travel with a firearm and a wrong way. The wrong way is to bring it to a checkpoint. Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms in checked baggage if they are unloaded, packed in a hard-side case, locked, and packed separately from ammunition. Then the firearm must be taken to the airline check-in counter.
TSA’s website has details on how to properly travel with a firearm. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition so travelers should contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies.
The Transportation Security Administration screens approximately 2 million passengers and their luggage every day for prohibited items, including weapons and explosives. To do this, TSA uses imaging technology to safely screen passengers for any items which may be concealed under clothing, while X-ray units screen all carry-on baggage.
Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration
