Gun Found In Carry-On Bag At Philadelphia International Airport

PHILADELPHIA — A man was found with a gun in his carry-on bag at the Philadelphia International Airport this week, TSA said.

According to TSA, the gun was found Wednesday at one of the security checkpoints.

The gun was intercepted when the checkpoint X-ray unit alerted a TSA officer of the gun inside the carry-on bag.

Police responded and confiscated the firearm.

The man told officials that he forgot that he had his gun with him.

It was the 29th firearm detected at the airport this year.

"Bringing a firearm to an airport security checkpoint introduces an unnecessary security risk to our officers and to fellow travelers," Gerardo Spero, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport, said. "Here it is one week before the 23rd anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and it should be obvious to all travelers that no weapons are permitted to be carried onto the cabin of an aircraft. We have no issues with people who pack their firearms properly for a flight. Bringing a loaded handgun to our checkpoints isn’t the way to do it. The proper way is to pack your unloaded firearm in a locked hard-sided case. Then take the case to your airline check-in counter and declare that you want to travel with it. The airline will make sure it is transported in the belly of the plane so that nobody has access to it during the flight. It’s a fairly simple process."