On Thursday evening, a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer discovered a revolver loaded with five rounds of ammunition during a routine screening of carry-on luggage at the Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR).
The male passenger was ticketed to fly from BUR to Las Vegas McCarran International Airport. Once the firearm was discovered, law enforcement was quickly notified to head to the security checkpoint where they questioned the passenger and confiscated the weapon.
According to a TSA press release, this was the seventh firearm that was discovered by the TSA at BUR in 2021 alone. While the increased statistics on departed passenger screenings — 95% of 2019 volumes with an expected increase throughout the summer months — are a reason for that total, the TSA has noticed that traveler searching errors are normally the cause.
When an incident like this occurs, the TSA reviews each individual case and levies a civil penalty of up to $10,000 against the passenger.
“It is disappointing that travelers fail to check the contents of their carry-on luggage and end up bringing prohibited items – including firearms – to the security checkpoint,” said TSA Federal Security Director Anita Minaei, who oversees TSA operations at BUR. “Not only was this an expensive mistake for the traveler, but his actions slowed down the security screening process for other travelers who were in the security checkpoint around the same time.”
The TSA ended up posting a release on Friday in which they ask travelers to be fully aware of the contents that they carry onto flights before reaching the security checkpoint. In it, they also provide references that will help make travel easier for passengers, including their travel advice website.
