El Tejon
Member
June 30, 2006 I was flying out of Indianapolis to Dallas, Texas. I declared my firearms (4 pistols) and showed that they were unloaded, signed the white tag and made ready to get to the gate as I "only" had 40 minutes to clear security.
As the lady was tagging my bags she looked at my range bag and said "sir, is this [my range bag] your carry on?" I replied no as it had ammo in it and TSA frowned on that.
I went to the bookstore to get a bottle of water and newspaper as I reemerged I heard my name being paged to the ticket counter. It seems TSA wanted in my range bag (I use a gun lock to lock all the zippers together).
I went downstairs and gave TSA the key (a mistake I now realize--based on their light fingers hard telling what they could have planted on me). They were back looking at it like the apes on 2001, must have been 20 minutes.
As I am looking at my watch and doing nervous stretching, the locked door opens and 2 uniformed Indy airport cops, 1 TSA White Shirt, and 3 guys in suits and earpieces meet me. It seems they found ammo in my range bag. You know that empty feeling in the pit of your stomach when you know bad stuff is about to hit the fan? I now had that feeling.
Yes, of course, I told the chick at the counter and its according to regs (in the boxes). Well, it seemed that there were some loose rounds under the fabric on the bag. I've owned this bag for 11 years and over the years loose rounds--.22s, .32s, 9mm, .45s, .223, .30-30, .308, et al--have accumulated under the bottom of the bag.
They brought the bag out and showed me the "incriminating evidence" (at this point 20 questions begin--"who are you?" "Where are you going?" "Why do you need guns?" etc). I asked for a cardboard box, a female uniformed cop told me I could not have one and I need to show ID right now. A baggage handler gave me an empty box and I knelt down and scooped up the loose rounds.
"There, better?", I hoped. Nope, wasn't better. Apparently my other boxed ammo (they did let me keep my Black Hills .45acp carry ammo so at least I had SD ammo) had to be confiscated. They took my .22s, my .44s, my .45acp, and two knives--one a cheap Gerber and one a decent Benchmade.
TSA dinged me pretty good on this trip. Lesson learned: clean your range bags before you fly.
As the lady was tagging my bags she looked at my range bag and said "sir, is this [my range bag] your carry on?" I replied no as it had ammo in it and TSA frowned on that.
I went to the bookstore to get a bottle of water and newspaper as I reemerged I heard my name being paged to the ticket counter. It seems TSA wanted in my range bag (I use a gun lock to lock all the zippers together).
I went downstairs and gave TSA the key (a mistake I now realize--based on their light fingers hard telling what they could have planted on me). They were back looking at it like the apes on 2001, must have been 20 minutes.
As I am looking at my watch and doing nervous stretching, the locked door opens and 2 uniformed Indy airport cops, 1 TSA White Shirt, and 3 guys in suits and earpieces meet me. It seems they found ammo in my range bag. You know that empty feeling in the pit of your stomach when you know bad stuff is about to hit the fan? I now had that feeling.
Yes, of course, I told the chick at the counter and its according to regs (in the boxes). Well, it seemed that there were some loose rounds under the fabric on the bag. I've owned this bag for 11 years and over the years loose rounds--.22s, .32s, 9mm, .45s, .223, .30-30, .308, et al--have accumulated under the bottom of the bag.
They brought the bag out and showed me the "incriminating evidence" (at this point 20 questions begin--"who are you?" "Where are you going?" "Why do you need guns?" etc). I asked for a cardboard box, a female uniformed cop told me I could not have one and I need to show ID right now. A baggage handler gave me an empty box and I knelt down and scooped up the loose rounds.
"There, better?", I hoped. Nope, wasn't better. Apparently my other boxed ammo (they did let me keep my Black Hills .45acp carry ammo so at least I had SD ammo) had to be confiscated. They took my .22s, my .44s, my .45acp, and two knives--one a cheap Gerber and one a decent Benchmade.
TSA dinged me pretty good on this trip. Lesson learned: clean your range bags before you fly.
on the TSA
