Texas was Home to Two of the Top 3 Airports for Gun Confiscation in ’22
Last year was a record setting year for TSA officers across the country as the confiscated more guns at airport checkpoints than ever before, agency officials recently announced. As it turns out a couple airports in The Lone Star State, including Dallas, TX, contributed to that total.
The Transportation Security Administration is reporting that they confiscated 6,542 firearms in 2022, that's 570 more than 2021, which was the previous record.
“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. “We had a very successful year... For years, our employees have not been paid fairly, and securing pay parity was necessary from an operational standpoint as we continue to see increasing travel volumes, and will also help our ability to recruit and hire new employees and retain the talent we have.”
If you didn't know, you need to leave fire arms somewhere else when flying, Airlines don't have to permit guns at all, not even in checked bags. In fact, KVUE points out that "All leading U.S. carriers temporarily banned guns in checked bags on flights to Washington, D.C.-area airports for a week after the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol."
And some news you should know before traveling in '23, "TSA also announced several new measures to mitigate firearms threats including enhanced screening for passengers in possession of a firearm at a TSA checkpoint and loss of TSA PreCheck® eligibility for up to five years. In December 2022, TSA also increased the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation to nearly $15,000."
Here are the Top 10 airports for gun confiscation in '22: