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He apparently thought he could carry it past a security checkpoint because of its value, TSA Transportation Security Administration Public Affairs spokesperson Lisa Farbstein said Monday.
“Doesn't matter to TSA how much the weapon is worth,” Farbstein said. “No weapons should be brought in the cabin of a plane.”
It was one of several weapons that TSA agents found people illegally carrying through checkpoints at airports throughout the country the past few days.
A passenger at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport had a folding knife in his carry-on, Farbstein said.
“Why go through all of this when you can just check it?” she asked.
Guns regularly turned up at TSA security checks nationwide. Agents at Pittsburgh International Airport alone have stopped 29 handguns this year.
A traveler at Boston’s Logan Airport this weekend had an unloaded revolver and five bullets in his bag, Farbstein noted.
“Important to remember that travelers with concealed carry permits can’t bring guns a plane,” she said. “Pack it unloaded in [a] locked hard case and take it to the check-in counter.”
Another traveler was caught at Williamsport Regional Airport in Pennsylvania with a gun his carry-on bag, Farbstein said.
A man caught with pistol at Richmond International Airport in Virginia told TSA agents he forgot that he had it with him, she said.
“Poor excuse,” she added. “If you own a firearm, you should know where it is at all times.”
It wasn’t the only weapon recently found by TSA agents at the Richmond airport.
One traveler tried “the ol’ dagger in the dirty hairbrush trick,” Farbstein said.
“Please leave your hairbrush dagger at home. Or consider cleaning it out and then packing it in a checked bag,” she said.
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