The US Transportation Safety Administration said last year saw a record number of weapons intercepted at checkpoints at the country’s airports.
Officials expect that this year will also see an increase in the number of weapons seized.
Forgetfulness is one reason
While heading to the plane, some people may forget a bottle of water in their carry-on bag or anything that is forbidden to be passed from here.
But in the United States, many people forget or forget that they have weapons and ammunition…and they are confiscated.
Speaking to “Sky News Arabia”, TSA official David Pekoski said: “What we’ve seen over the years is that every year we see more and more firearms being brought into our checkpoints. And last year was the highest ever.”
Last year set a record number of weapons intercepted at airport checkpoints across the country.
- About 6,500 weapons were confiscated at airport checkpoints in 2022.
- 6,500 weapons were seized in various passenger bags at US airport checkpoints.
- 88 percent of them are loaded with ammunition.
A number that reflects, according to officials, what is happening in society in terms of the increasing spread of weapons among Americans.
“We’ve done a lot of public outreach to try to encourage passengers to check their carry-on baggage thoroughly to make sure they don’t have firearms,” Robert Spinden, director of federal security at the Airports Administration, told Sky News Arabia.
“As you can see here at the checkpoint we have a large number of signs to try to remind the passengers,” he added.
The fine for carrying weapons at airports is $15,000, yet most travelers who are caught with weapons claim they have forgotten them.
Therefore, the procedures differ according to the states, between arresting the person and confiscating the weapon and imposing a fine, and in other times the owner is allowed to give it to someone with him at the airport and continue the journey without him.
The Transportation Security Administration says it last year raised airport gun fines to about $15,000 to deter travelers, but that hasn’t reduced the number of gun carriers.
