NORFOLK, Va. — A loaded handgun was found at Norfolk International Airport inside a Missouri man's carry-on bag Saturday, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said.
The .380 caliber gun was loaded with six bullets, the agency wrote in a news release. Airport security officers caught it after an x-ray unit alerted when the bag went through, requiring a closer inspection.
Police removed the gun and cited the man on a weapons charge. He also faces a financial penalty for bringing a gun to a TSA security checkpoint.
“Summer travel season is in full swing and it is no time to be bringing prohibited or illegal items to our security checkpoints because it slows down the screening process for everyone until the incident is resolved,” Robin “Chuck” Burke, TSA’s federal security director for the airport, wrote in a news release. If you’re flying this summer, it is vitally important to know that the items you have in your carry-on bag are allowed through our security checkpoints."
This marks the 20th gun caught at Norfolk International Airport in 2023, seven months into the year. TSA officers caught 27 guns in 2022 and 23 guns in 2021.
People can travel with firearms if it's packed in checked baggage. They have to be unloaded and then packed in a hard-sided locked case, which has to be taken to the airline check-in counter to be declared.
For more information about traveling with firearms, visit the TSA's website.