Crime & Safety
VA Woman Cited For Bringing Firearm To Dulles Airport Checkpoint
For the second day in a row, Dulles Airport TSA officers found a loaded handgun in a traveler's carry-on items, according to reports.
DULLES, VA — Transportation Security Administration officers prevented a Haymarket woman from bringing a loaded handgun onto a flight leaving Dulles International Airport on Tuesday.
TSA officers working the X-ray machine detected a firearm in the woman's carry-on bag. Searching the bag, officers recovered a .380 caliber handgun was loaded with six bullets, including one in the chamber.
Officers from the Washington Metropolitan Airports Authority Police were contacted. They confiscated the firearm and issued a criminal citation to the traveler. She faces a potential financial penalty of up to $15,000 for bringing a weapon to an airport checkpoint.
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Tuesday's incident comes a day after TSA officers at the same airport found a loaded handgun among a Winchester man's carry-on items. WMAA police confiscated the weapon and issued the traveler a criminal citation.
“I’m extremely proud of our officers for their continued focus on our mission, and at the same time I’m highly disappointed that travelers keep showing up at our checkpoints with their guns,” said Eric Beane, TSA’s deputy federal security director for the airport. “When someone carries a firearm to one of our checkpoints, they are introducing a security threat into the entire airport environment. There’s truly no excuse for bringing a deadly weapon to our checkpoints because you can’t carry it onto a flight.”
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TSA officers detected 29 firearms at Washington Dulles International Airport in 2024, which was five more than the 24 stopped in 2023. So far, TSA officers have stopped three guns at Dulles Airport checkpoints in 2025.
How To Travel Legally With A Firearm
Passengers are allowed to travel with firearms only in checked baggage if they are unloaded and packed in a hard-sided locked case, with ammunition stored separately. Then the locked case should be taken to the airline check-in counter, where it will be checked with the traveler's baggage.
The TSA has details online that explain how to properly travel with a firearm.
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