TSA Reports Record Number of Guns Confiscated from Airline Passengers in 2022
Summary from the AllSides News Team
On Tuesday, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that a record number of firearms were confiscated from airline passengers in 2022.
The Details: The airports with the highest number of confiscations were Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport with 448; Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport with 385; and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston with 298.
Key Quotes: “I am incredibly proud of our dedicated TSA employees who perform the critical task of securing our nation’s transportation systems each day,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske.
For Context: The increase in guns found in carry-on bags comes as many travelers return to the airports following the COVID-19 pandemic, and as a record number of guns have been bought in the U.S. over the past few years. TSA screened about 736 million passengers through airport checkpoints in 2022. Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms in their checked baggage if they are packed in a locked, hard-sided case and are unloaded.
How the Media Covered it: The record number of gun seizures was reported across the political spectrum, with sources on the right and left both noting that about 88% of the guns were loaded.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Right
You’ve Got Your Handgun in My Peanut Butter!
The U.S. Transportation Security Administration announced today that, in 2022, it detected a record 6,542 firearms in carry-on bags or on passengers at checkpoints. That’s a sizeable jump from the 5,972 detected in 2021 and a spike compared with the 4,432 detected in 2019. Of the guns caught in 2022, approximately 88 percent were loaded. Firearms were caught at 262 airport checkpoints nationwide.
The Wall Street Journal’s write-up includes these eye-opening anecdotes:
At security checkpoints this year, the agency has found firearms in some peculiar vessels. In September, TSA found a gun stuffed into a whole...
From the Left
TSA confiscated record number of guns from airline passengers in 2022
Transportation Security Administration officers confiscated more than 6,542 firearms from airport passengers in 2022 — the highest number recorded since the agency's inception. Of those guns taken at airport security checkpoints, 88% were loaded, the agency announced Tuesday.
The confiscations by TSA mark a nearly 10% increase over the 5,972 firearms seized in 2021, which was also a record.
The agency announced in December that it was raising the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation from $13,910 to $14,950.
These were the airports with the largest number of guns confiscated...
From the Center
TSA: Record number of guns caught at checkpoints in 2022
The Transportation Security Administration announced Tuesday that travel returned to pre-pandemic levels, with around 2 million passengers screened a day, but 2022 also set a new record for firearm interceptions.
The agency reported that it confiscated 6,542 firearms in 2022, 88% of which were loaded, at security checkpoints. That’s an increase of more than 500 firearms in 2021, which saw a record of 5,972 firearms.
“I am incredibly proud of our dedicated TSA employees who perform the critical task of securing our nation’s transportation systems each day,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske....
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