PITTSBURGH — Transportation Security Administration officers at Pittsburgh International Airport caught another gun over the weekend, making it the fifth one stopped in the first seven days of the month.
On Saturday, a Natronia Heights, Pa., man was stopped with a loaded .38 caliber handgun.
Karen Keys-Turner, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport, says it’s a constant battle to prevent travelers from bringing guns to checkpoints.
“Our officers are vigilant and focused on our mission. This proliferation of passengers toting their firearms with their carry-on items needs to stop. There’s no excuse for bringing a gun to our checkpoints because you certainly can’t carry it onto your flight. Bringing a gun to an airport checkpoint is a serious matter and those individuals doing so will pay for their mistake,” Keys-Turner said.
The catch also ties the record for guns stopped at the airport in an entire year, 35, with two and a half months remaining in 2023.
“Bring a gun to our checkpoint and you will face a stiff federal financial civil penalty that could cost you thousands of dollars,” Keys-Turner added. “Make no mistake, there is a high cost for gun owners who think that they can stroll through a checkpoint and onto a plane with a gun.”
Passengers are permitted to travel with guns only in checked baggage if they are unloaded and packed in a hard-sided locked case. Then the locked case should be taken to the airline check-in counter to be declared.
TSA has details on how to travel with a firearm properly posted on its website.
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