People are bringing guns and knives to U.S. airports at rates that have steadily risen in the years following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks 17 years ago.
Transportation Security Administration officials seized a record-high 3,957 guns in passenger carry-on bags at airport checkpoints in 2017, nearly five times the number seized a decade ago, according to government data.
“We all remember 9/11 but … as we get farther away, people tend to forget the reasons we have those things [security protocols] in place. It’s not arbitrary. It’s all based on stuff that’s happened in the real world and intelligence we’ve gotten,” Mark Howell, TSA regional spokesperson, told the Washington Examiner.
Howell said the agency sets up exhibits at airports to remind the public that things like a shoe bomb are not just hypothetical concerns, but the types of items that have been used before by bad actors. During the 9/11 attacks in 2001, terrorists used box cutters to gain control of several airplanes, an event that permanently changed the nature of airport security in America.
But many of the weapons being brought to airports today aren’t connected to a planned terrorist attack. In many cases, people simply forget what they’re carrying.
The issue, Howell said, is getting people to slow down on their way out the door and ditch any banned items before they get to the airport. He dubbed the problem the “Home Alone” syndrome.
“Travel has just become a really stressful thing, especially around the holidays. There’s a lot more volume around the holidays. People are starting to rush,” said Howell. “People are gathering all their stuff together and heading to the airport.”
The number of loaded and unloaded firearms seized by officers has increased every year over the past decade. In 2007, the Department of Homeland Security agency documented 803 guns discovered at airport checkpoints. That number ticked up a few dozen in the first year, then began climbing a few hundred each year after. By 2014, TSA reported 2,212 gun seizures and then 2,653 in 2015.
Five hundred more firearms were found on passengers and in their baggage in 2017 than 2016.
Of the nearly 4,000 firearms found on travelers, 3,324 were loaded with ammunition, and 1,378 of those had a round chambered.
TSA has previously attributed the spike to an overall increase in air travel passengers, not necessarily an underlying terror threat.
“More guns plus more travelers means more guns at airports,” Howell said.
Firearm possession laws vary with state and local laws. But firearms must be unloaded and locked in a hard-sided container and transported as checked baggage before they can fly.
All parts, including ammunition, must be declared at the airline ticket counter during the check-in process. Those who do not follow the law can be arrested and fined up to $11,000.
