‘Know what’s in your bag.’ TSA finds guns, other weapons at RDU checkpoints
Before you head to the airport for your summer vacation, the Transportation Security Administration has some packing advice: Completely empty your carry-on bag before filling it up again.
How come? Because one of the most common reasons people give for trying to bring guns or other prohibited items through TSA checkpoints is that they didn’t know they were in the bag, says agency spokesman Dan Velez.
“Start with an empty suitcase,” Velez said. “That way you won’t have anything that you might have had in there from a previous trip.”
TSA officers find several prohibited items each day at RDU’s checkpoints. They include anything that could be used as a weapon, such as knives, brass knuckles and mace, but also hammers, wrenches and screw drivers over 7 inches long.
And, of course, they find firearms.
TSA officers have come across 34 at RDU so far this year. That’s down from 39 at the same point last year, though the agency has screened fewer passengers this year. Statewide, TSA has found 109 guns at North Carolina airports so far this year, up from 104 at the same point last year.
When TSA agents spot a gun in an X-ray image, they stop the screening process and call airport police. Officers remove the bag from the X-ray machine, confiscate the weapon and determine whether to press charges. Options range from a civil citation to a felony charge, depending on the circumstances.
The TSA also fines passengers caught with a firearm at a checkpoint as much as $15,000 and revokes their TSA PreCheck eligibility for at least five years.
You can fly with a gun
You cannot bring a firearm or ammunition into the cabin of an airplane, even if you have a concealed carry permit.
But it is possible to fly with a firearm, as long as it is unloaded and in a locked, hard-sided container as checked baggage. Passengers must let the airline know about the firearm or ammunition when checking the bag at the ticket counter.
Except for guns, officers don’t confiscate prohibited items at checkpoints, but they also don’t let them through. Many people decide to give up their knife or hammer rather than run it back to the car or meet someone outside, Velez said. Surrendered items are collected and eventually turned over to state government surplus to be sold.
The TSA finds more firearms and other weapons during busy travel times such as holidays and summer, says Jennifer Gordon, federal security director at RDU. These are also times when people who don’t fly often find themselves at an airport security checkpoint for the first time in a long while, and may not know the rules or what all is in their bag.
“Typically on your business travel days, Mondays, things like that, you won’t see as much,” Gordon said. “But summer travel, when everybody’s going out for vacation, you can see the uptick.”
If you’re unsure about what items might or might not be allowed through an airport security checkpoint, go to TSA.gov and click on “What Can I Bring?” in the top right corner. For more information about traveling with a gun, go to www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition.
This story was originally published June 2, 2025 at 1:24 PM with the headline "‘Know what’s in your bag.’ TSA finds guns, other weapons at RDU checkpoints."
