2 Loaded Handguns Found In Carry-On Bags At National Airport: Report

ARLINGTON, VA — During the two busiest days for the Transportation Security Administration at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, officers stopped two people from bringing firearms onto flights.

An Alexandria man told TSA officers that he'd forgotten he had his firearm with him, when they discovered a .40 caliber handgun loaded with 14 bullets, including one in the chamber, in carry-on baggage.

The next day, TSA officers found a .380 caliber hand gun loaded with seven bullets in the carry-on bag of a Florida man.

In both cases, TSA notified the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police, who confiscated the handguns and cited the men on weapons charges. The two incidents were not linked, according to TSA.

BREAKING NEWS: If you flew yesterday, congratulations, you were part of a record-setting day! @TSA officers screened more people at airport security checkpoints nationwide yesterday (May 24th) than any other day in our 22-year history—2,951,163 individuals were screened! https://t.co/FGKq7N4WAL
— Lisa Farbstein, TSA Spokesperson (@TSA_Northeast) May 25, 2024

“It has been a very busy Memorial Day holiday travel period here and across the country,” said John Busch, TSA’s federal security director for the airport. “Our officers are good at their jobs and even with sky-high checkpoint volume, they remain alert and vigilant in screening individuals who are arriving at our checkpoints. I commend our officers on their good catches in preventing these individuals from boarding their flights with a loaded firearm.”

Guns are not permitted through the security checkpoint and the travelers face a stiff financial civil penalty from TSA. The penalty for carrying weapons can reach a maximum of $15,000.

“Travelers need to pay more attention to the items that they have inside their carry-on bags,” Busch said. “Travelers are responsible for the contents of their carry-on bags. Bringing a firearm to one of our checkpoints on days that we were setting records for the highest checkpoint volume in our agency’s 22-day history was not only careless, but it slowed down the security screening process for other travelers, which certainly was not appreciated.”

People are allowed to travel with their handguns, but the handguns must be properly stored in their checked baggage and declared at check-in. In addition, handguns must be stored unloaded in a hard-locked case, with ammunition stored separately. The hard-locked case must be brought to the airline check-in window, where it will be checked with the traveler's baggage. TSA has more information available online for people traveling with firearms.

Including the handguns found on Thursday and Friday, TSA officers have detected a total of 18 firearms at Reagan National airport in 2024. Thirty-nine firearms were stopped at the airport in 2023, which was 10 more than in the previous year