Security

TSA Catches Nearly 7,000 Guns at Airports in 2024

During 2024, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) intercepted a total of 6,678 firearms at airport security checkpoints, preventing them from getting into the secure areas of the airport and onboard aircraft. Approximately 94% of the guns were loaded.

Courtesy: TSA

This total is a slight decrease from the record-setting year in 2023, when the TSA caught 6,737 guns. Throughout 2024, the TSA managed its “Prepare, Pack, Declare” public awareness campaign to explain the steps for safely traveling with a firearm.

In a Jan. 15 press release, now-former TSA Administrator David Pekoske said, “One firearm at a checkpoint is too many. Firearms present a safety risk for our employees and everyone else at the checkpoint. It’s also costly and slows down operations. If individuals who carry a firearm intend to travel, we remind them that the firearm must be unloaded, locked in a hard-sided case, declared to the airline at the check-in counter, and transported in checked baggage.”

In 2024, TSA screened more than 904 million people, meaning the agency intercepted 7.4 firearms per million people, a decrease from 7.8 firearms per million people in 2023. (Notably, the TSA also set a screening record in 2024 on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, the agency’s busiest holiday travel period ever, screening 3.1 million people.)

For more info on how to properly travel with a firearm, visit the TSA’s site here.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *