TSA Week in Review: A Roundup of the Prohibited Items Discovered This Week

Fireworks -  20 fireworks – some without labels – were discovered in a checked bag at Norfolk (ORF) resulting in a 50 minute closure of the checked baggage area. 

Items in the Strangest Places –It’s important to check your bags prior to traveling. If a prohibited item is discovered in your bag, you could be cited and possibly arrested by local law enforcement. Here are a few examples from this week where prohibited items were found in strange places. 

• A knife was found concealed in a metal food container (with food) at Sacramento (SMF).
• A multi-tool with a knife was detected attached to the handle of the carry-on bag at Denver (DEN).
• A sword cane was discovered at Kahului (OGG).

 

 

What Not to Say at an Airport – Statements like these not only delay the people who said them but can also inconvenience many other passengers if the checkpoint or terminal has to be evacuated:

• When asked if he had any dangerous items in his bag, a Los Angeles (LAX) passenger stated “I have a bomb.” He then grabbed his boarding pass and walked away. The police stopped him. This resulted in a 16 minute closure of the ticketing area.

Stun Guns –  Five stun guns were discovered this week in a carry-on bags around the nation: Baltimore (BWI), Sacramento (SMF), Peoria (PIA), Kahului (OGG), Los Angeles (LAX)

Miscellaneous Prohibited Items - In addition to all of the other prohibited items we find weekly, our Officers also regularly find firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, Airsoft guns, brass knuckles, ammunition, batons, and a lot of sharp pointy things -- to mention a few… 

Firearms - Here are pictures of some of the firearms our Officers found in carry-on baggage since I posted last Friday. See a complete list below.  

You can travel with your firearms in checked baggage, but they must first be declared to the airline. You can go here for more details on how to properly travel with your firearms. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should familiarize themselves with state and local firearm laws for each point of travel prior to departure. 

Unfortunately these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about these finds. Sure, it’s great to share the things that our officers are finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the throughput is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. This is a friendly reminder to please leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.

Bob Burns

TSA Blog Team

If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact us by clicking here.

TSA Making an Impact with FEMA’s Hurricane Recovery Efforts in New York

 TSA Washington/Reagan Supervisor Lisa Caillet in Far Rockaway, NY

Over  the past five weeks, thousands of New Yorkers have come in contact with more than 700 TSA officers, inspectors and administrative personnel from 200 airports across the country, men and women who have volunteered for a FEMA-led New York humanitarian recovery and assistance effort in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.  But odds are that they never knew it because these TSA employees literally traded in their blue security uniforms, black TSA inspector jackets and TSA badges for a FEMA badge to help residents recover from the devastation of Hurricane Sandy.

These TSA employees are wearing winter coats and wool caps as members of the FEMA Community Relations Teams, going door-to-door in neighborhoods affected by Hurricane Sandy, helping residents sign up for both FEMA and state assistance.  In many cases, these workers returned to check on the status of those applications, and returned again to make “wellness checks” along with members of the National Guard to offer water and food. 

TSA employees also are staffing many of FEMA’s Disaster Recover Centers (DRC) that have been set up in community and recreation centers, schools, and other locations.  At DRC’s, survivors are guided through the recovery process to ensure that they are getting needed aid .  They can also learn about available programs to get heat and electricity restored to their homes and shops – so that their homes can again become inhabitable, and their shops readied for a return to business.

TSA Atlantic City BDO James Weisbecker in Breezy Point, NY

Douglas Estridge, a Master Behavior Detection Officer from Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), said he was making a follow-up visit to the home of a middle-aged couple and noticed that the husband was leaning awkwardly on the door frame. Shortly before the storm, the man had undergone double-knee surgery but because his car had been flooded,  he had been unable to get to his physical therapy sessions. Esteridge was able to contact his FEMA group leader, and together they arranged transportation for the man to get to his physical therapy appointments.

Mark Siepak, a TSA Officer from Piedmont Triad International Airport (GSO) in Greensboro, N.C.,  said that early in his FEMA deployment, he was speaking with a woman who was living with her elderly mother – with no heat or electricity.. The mother’s feet would turn blue from the cold and the daughter would rub her mother’s feet several times a day to warm them up. Siepak made what he refers to as “an urgent-need call” and while on the phone it was determined that the women were eligible for funds to cover the cost of housing and that the funds would be transferred the same day. 

TSA Charlotte TSO Dwayne Bishop in Staten Island, NY

“If we get one person registered for assistance, we know we are making a difference. We don’t want anybody to slip through the cracks,” explains Vicki Andrews, a TSA Officer from Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport (GPT) in Mississippi, a Hurricane Katrina survivor who knows personally the value of FEMA’s efforts. She was so appreciative of the assistance she and her family and community received post-Katrina that for this disaster, she made the decision to “pay it forward” and came north to help support FEMA’s efforts in New York.

These TSA employees put their lives on hold, packed a bag and waved goodbye to their families because they saw a need to help make a difference in the lives of complete strangers at a time when the need was greatest. They spent Thanksgiving away from loved ones. In the words of FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate – “duty called.”

TSA Amarillo Supervisor Sharon Buckley in Breezy Point, NY.

Like other agencies that fall within the scope of the Department of Homeland Security, TSA employees can volunteer to be members of what is known as the Surge Capacity Force; these volunteers are willing to be deployed to a disaster location to help FEMA with response and recovery support.

Make no mistake, this work is no vacation. Surge Capacity Force members are putting in a minimum of 12- to 14-hour days living on maritime training vessels docked in the waterways of New York, to enable displaced residents to utilize the available hotel rooms. TSA employees are eating in a galley and sleeping in the hulls of ships in large, shared living quarters that feature triple-bunks. “But we are sleeping well knowing that the important work we are doing is making a difference” in improving the lives of their fellow countrymen, says Sharon Buckley, a Supervisory Transportation Security Officer from Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA).

Guest Blogger Lisa Farbstein 

TSA Public Affairs Spokesperson, New York/New Jersey

If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact us by clicking here.

TSA Week in Review: 41 Firearms, 40 Stun Guns, 4 Grenades, 1 Rocket Launcher. No Partridge in a Pear Tree…

Inert Ordnance and Grenades Etc. – We continue to find inert hand grenades and other weaponry on weekly basis. Please keep in mind that if an item looks like a realistic bomb, grenade, mine, etc., it is prohibited - real or not. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in checked baggage, they can cause significant delays. I know they are cool novelty items, but it is best not to take them on a plane.  Read here and here on why inert items cause problems.

• AT-4 Rocket Launcher – This bring back memories. I had a few of these in the back of my HMMWV in Desert Storm when it caught fire! Talk about lighting a fire under your seat… This particular AT-4 at Latrobe (LBE) was expended, but it was an eye-opener for our officers to say the least. It was discovered in checked baggage.
• Four inert grenades were discovered in carry-on bags this week at Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Dallas (DAL), Houston (HOU), and Juneau (JNU).
• A grenade shaped belt buckle was discovered at LaGuardia (LGA).
• A perfume bottle in the shape of a grenade was discovered at Houston (IAH).

Items in the Strangest Places –It’s important to check your bags prior to traveling. If a prohibited item is discovered in your bag, you could be cited and possibly arrested by local law enforcement. Here are a few examples from this week where prohibited items were found in strange places. 

• An 8” knife was detected under the lining of a carry-on bag at Newark (EWR).
• A razorblade was detected in a sock at Newark (EWR).
• An 8” knife was detected in a cane at Baltimore (BWI).

What Not to Say at an Airport – Statements like these not only delay the people who said them but can also inconvenience many other passengers if the checkpoint or terminal has to be evacuated:

• A Newark (EWR) passenger told the gate agent: “If you don’t want another terrorist attack, I better make this flight.”
• During a bag search at Boise (BOI), a passenger stated: “I might have a bomb in my bag.”
• During a bag search at Dallas (DAL), a passenger stated: “I’m a terrorist.”

 

Stun Guns – Forty stun guns were discovered this week in a carry-on bags around the nation: Lincoln (LNK), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Columbia (CAE), Newark (EWR), Minneapolis (MSP), Atlanta (ATL), Minot (MOT).

• A passenger at Boston (BOS) had seven stun guns in his bag. They were Christmas gifts… One could say they were “shocking” stuffers.
• This probably sets some sort of record, but a passenger traveling out of John F. Kennedy (JFK) had 26 stun guns in his carry on bag!

Miscellaneous Prohibited Items - In addition to all of the other prohibited items we find weekly, our Officers also regularly find firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, Airsoft guns, brass knuckles, ammunition, batons, and a lot of sharp pointy things -- to mention a few… 

Firearms - Here are pictures of some of the firearms our Officers found in carry-on baggage since I posted last Friday. See a complete list below.  

You can travel with your firearms in checked baggage, but they must first be declared to the airline. You can go here for more details on how to properly travel with your firearms. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should familiarize themselves with state and local firearm laws for each point of travel prior to departure. 

Unfortunately these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about these finds. Sure, it’s great to share the things that our officers are finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the throughput is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. This is a friendly reminder to please leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.

Bob Burns

TSA Blog Team

If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact us by clicking here.

iPad Theft at JFK

TSA is working cooperatively with the Port Authority Police Department (PAPD) following the arrest of a TSA employee at JFK accused of stealing an iPad. The individual is being processed for removal from TSA.

Bob Burns

TSA Blog Team

If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact us by clicking here.