Loaded Handgun Found In Traveler's Bag At Dulles Airport Checkpoint

DULLES, VA — A Tennessee traveler told officials that he forgot he was carrying a loaded handgun when Transportation Security Administration officers stopped him at a security checkpoint at Washington Dulles International Airport on Sunday, according to a release.

The X-ray unit had alerted TSA officers that the traveler's carry-on bag contained a weapon. When the bag was searched, the officers found a .380 caliber handgun loaded with six bullets. They also found a gun magazine packed with seven bullets along with the firearm.

TSA contacted the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police, who cited the man on a weapons charge and confiscated the gun.

“It is the busy spring travel season and when someone shows up with a firearm at the checkpoint the conveyor belt is stopped until the police arrive and can remove the carry-on bag from the X-ray machine to safely secure the weapon,” said Scott T. Johnson, TSA’s federal security director for the airport, in a release. “Bringing a loaded firearm to a security checkpoint not only slows down the individuals in that lane, but it is also a security and safety concern. Guns should never be brought to the security checkpoint in carry-on luggage.”

For carrying a loaded handgun to an airport security checkpoint, the man from Tennessee faces a stiff financial civil penalty, as well as federal penalties of up to $15,000.

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.

From 2016-2023, TSA officers stopped 137 weapons from being carried onto flights leaving Dulles Airport, including six this year to date