20th Gun Of 2022 Detected At Reagan National Airport By TSA Officers

ARLINGTON, VA — A man from Prince George’s County, Maryland, was stopped from bringing a loaded handgun onto a flight at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Wednesday morning, according to the Transportation Security Administration.

The handgun was the 20th gun detected by TSA officers at Reagan National Airport so far in 2022.

The 9mm gun was loaded with seven bullets, including one in the chamber. It was found among the man’s carry-on items.

When TSA officers spotted the firearm, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police were notified. They confiscated the weapon and cited the man, a resident of Fort Washington, Maryland, TSA said.

“Our TSA officers are very good at detecting firearms and other prohibited items at security checkpoints,” said John Busch, TSA’s federal security director for Reagan National Airport. “All responsible gun owners know where their firearm is at all times and know how to pack it for a flight.”

Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms only in checked baggage if they are properly packaged and declared at their airline ticket counter.

Bringing a gun to an airport checkpoint carries a federal civil penalty because TSA reserves the right to issue a civil penalty to travelers who have guns and gun parts with them at a checkpoint. Civil penalties for bringing a handgun into a checkpoint can total thousands of dollars. This applies to travelers with or without concealed gun carry permits because even though someone may have a concealed carry permit, it does not allow for a firearm to be carried onto an airplane, TSA said.

Nationwide, TSA officers detected 5,972 firearms on passengers or their carry-on bags at checkpoints in 2021. Of the guns caught by TSA in 2021, about 86 percent were loaded.

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