The TSA found a record 6,542 firearms in carry-on luggage at 262 different airports in 2022, according to the agency's annual round-up.
Let's put those numbers in perspective: Out of 761 million screenings across the country, 8.6 firearms were found for every million passengers. Put another way, the TSA found one firearm for every 116,394 passengers.
Among the firearms found, the TSA said 88 percent were loaded.
Many of these airports were located across the U.S. South. These are the top 10 worst-offenders:
Austin and Tampa are both new additions to the list. They replaced Louis Armstrong New Orleans International and Salt Lake City International.
Yet southern airports weren't the only ones to see an uptick in gun-toting passengers. New York City airports reported finding 39 handguns at checkpoints in 2022, up from 26 in 2021.
Here's what happens when the TSA stumbles upon a firearm during a security screening. Airport staff will immediately notify local law enforcement officers, who then remove the weapon from the X-ray tunnel and contact the passenger. From there, law enforcement has some discretion based on local laws, but the TSA can in some cases levy a civil penalty.
The agency said it weighs a number of factors when deciding to penalize a traveler, such as whether the firearm was loaded or if there was ammunition accessible nearby. Even if a traveler has a concealed weapons permit, it added, firearms are not permitted in carry-on luggage.
All passengers must declare their firearm during the check-in process.
A grand jury in Virginia has indicted the mother of a 6-year-old boy who shot his teacher.
The FBI recently issued a warning to users to be wary of public device charging stations that you might find in places like hotels or airports over fears that criminals
More than 200 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers have returned home in a prisoner swap, the warring countries said Monday.
A 23-year-old bank employee armed with a rifle opened fire at his Louisville workplace Monday morning, killing five people — including a close friend of the governor — while livestreaming the attack, authorities said.
King Charles III will be taking a shorter ride to Westminster Abbey, trimming the procession route his mother took in 1953 as he aims for a more modest coronation that will include some modern touches.
Thousands of professors, part-time lecturers and graduate student workers at New Jersey’s flagship university have gone on strike — the first such job action in the school’s 257-year history.
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said "Everything is on the table" when asked if he'd recommend that the FDA ignore Friday's ruling to reverse the agency's nearly 23-year-old approval of the medication abortion drug mifepristone.
For the 12th straight month, global food prices fell, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization.
Tara Hannant couldn't wait for the moment her two-year-old Rory \would meet his new brother. She said the toddler was just as excited as she was, and he even showed up to the hospital with gifts in hand.
Cheddar News' Shannon LaNier got behind the wheel at Velocity Driving — a driving range on Long Island where customers can pay for a chance to ride their favorite exotic cars.
