Guns found at airport checkpoints are on track to break record

The TSA is on pace this year to again break the record for the number of guns intercepted at airport security checkpoints, underscoring a persistent challenge for security officials amid brisk gun sales in the United States. So far this year, TSA officers have already discovered more than 4,600 guns at airport checkpoints, and about 87% of them were loaded, according to the agency. Last year, the TSA found nearly 6,000 guns at airport checkpoints, which itself was a record. The number of guns discovered at security checkpoints has been trending upward for more than a decade, with the only decrease coming during the pandemic. The slew of guns found at the nation’s airports this year have come as air travel in the United States is nearing a return to prepandemic levels. Gun sales in the country have surged in recent years, suggesting that some travelers may be unfamiliar with the rules for carrying firearms while traveling by plane. “Entering a checkpoint with a firearm, particularly a loaded one, is an expensive mistake,” said Carter Langston, a TSA spokesman. When a gun is found at a checkpoint, the TSA does not seize it. Instead, agents are instructed to call law enforcement to handle the situation. There is no federal criminal penalty for passengers caught with a gun at a checkpoint, but the TSA can impose a fine of up to about $14,000 and the loss of PreCheck membership — which allows for expedited security screening — for up to five years.<br/>