He 'Forgot' About Loaded Gun Reston Man Tells Police At Dulles Airport

DULLES, VA — A Reston man was stopped from bringing a loaded handgun onto his flight leaving Washington Dulles International Airport on Wednesday, according to a Transportation Security Administration release. The handgun was the 25th detected at a TSA checkpoint at the airport in 2022.

TSA officials found the 9mm handgun loaded with seven bullets after being alerted by the X-ray unit to inspect the traveler's carry-on bag, according to the release.

Officers from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police confiscated gun and cited the man on a weapons charge. The man told police that he had forgotten that he was carrying a loaded gun, according to TSA.

“Our officers are good at their jobs and are focused on their mission — especially during the busy holiday travel period,” said Scott T. Johnson, TSA’s federal security director at Dulles Airport. “If you own a firearm, it is your responsibility to know where it is at all times and know that it cannot go through an airport security checkpoint. This individual’s forgetfulness means that he now faces a stiff financial civil penalty — a penalty for carrying a weapon that was recently increased to a maximum of $15,000.”

Related: Here's How Many Guns TSA Seized So Far In 2022 At DC's 3 Airports

In a news release Friday, TSA said 88 percent of the record 6,301 firearms were loaded. As holiday travel picks up — with 7.2 million Americans expected to pass through airports over the next couple of weeks — the TSA expects that number to increase to about 6,600.