A man was stopped from taking a loaded gun aboard a plane by federal officers Monday at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, officials said.
Transportation Security Administration officers detected the firearm in the man’s carry-on bags at a checkpoint, they said. The officers immediately alerted Wayne County Airport police, who removed the traveler and confiscated the weapon.
“Our outstanding TSA officers prevented this firearm from entering the secure area of the airport,” Detroit’s TSA Federal Security Director Steve Lorincz said in a statement Wednesday. “Passengers who are traveling with firearms should ensure they are properly packed in their checked baggage … .”
Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms in checked baggage if the weapons are unloaded, packed separately from ammunition in a locked hardback case and declared at the airline check-in counter, officials said. The law applies to travelers with or without concealed gun carry permits because even though an individual may have a concealed carry permit, it does not allow for a firearm to be carried onto an airplane.
Travelers with guns and gun parts at a checkpoint face civil penalties. A typical first offense for carrying a loaded handgun into a checkpoint is $4,100. However, the fine can be as high as $13,669, depending on aggravating circumstances.
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