Flying With Ammo?

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12GA00buck

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Okay I'm flying home to visit family for the Holidays. I'm bringing my guns with me, because on a matter of principle I don’t go anywhere without a firearm if I can avoid it. I have a hard sided locking case for the guns, but I'm not sure about the ammo. The airline web sight just said it had to be packaged well enough to prevent crushing. I put some rounds in a tin, and some shells in a canvas belt case. I put both those in a study cardboard box, then taped it with duck tape. I'm assuming I can just put in with my regular suitcase in checked baggage? I hope I don’t have to keep it separate and pay for an additional $50 "bag". Its a realativly small box well under the "50 pound" limit. Anybody else have experience with transporting ammo?
Thanks in advance,
Happy Holidays Everyone
 
It's common to find airlines requiring that ammo be in the original boxes. Frankly, it's easier to just do this than explain/argue with the clerk/security folks.
 
Why not just send the ammo on ahead of you by FedEx or something like that. Probably easier than flying with ammo since 9/11. Also, why not just buy the ammo you need when you get there since it will be cheaper than paying for a seperate bag on the plane.
 
Just declare it when you declare your guns. They usually don't sweat the details and never check to make sure you're carrying 11 pounds or under.

I carry ammo stuffed into mags, original and aftermarket containers.
 
+1 for express/3 day shipments...

I also suggest sending your ammo, holsters, etc ahead by USPS, FedEx, UPS etc if it's possible. It may cost more but I say it's more secure then using airports/airlines. In my area the local airport was under investigation by media sources for the large amount of loss/theft incidents in "secure" areas :uhoh: .

Happy Holidays!

Rusty :cool:
 
12Ga,

Original manufacturer's boxes are best, followed by specific-made plastic ammo boxes, such as made by MTM or reloading companies. Those are least likely to get you in trouble with the airline. You may put the ammo in the same piece of luggage as your gun, but it must not be in the gun case.

Next choice would be to buy factory ammo when you get to your destination. If you just need enough to load up mags for your CCW gun, then you probably only need to spend about $20 for the fill-up.

Don't waste the money shipping your ammo.
 
NO ammo

I fly home quite often and after a nightmare once at the airport because of ammo I only check my pistol and have my ride waiting with a new box of shells for me at my destination. Works out quite well.
 
TSA regs say that original packaging placed in the same case with the firearm is acceptable. Southwest and Continental agree with this policy.

I always carry copies of the the airline policies and TSA rules with me in case I have to deal with an uninformed bureaucrat.
 
here's a blurb off TSA's website:

http://www.tsa.gov/summer/firearms.htm

Transported ammunition must be securely packed in fiber (such as cardboard), wood or metal boxes or other packaging specifically designed to carry small amounts of ammunition.

Firearm magazines/clips do not satisfy the packaging requirement unless they provide a complete and secure enclosure of the ammunition.

The ammunition may also be located in the same hard-sided case as the firearm, as long as it is properly packed as described above.

make sure you print out the regulations and take a copy with you. last time i had a loaded magazine with eight .45 rounds and they went bananas and confiscated the rounds from me and then refused to give me a receipt for the ammunition. they told me i could "toss them in a trash can" if i wanted to. yeah, ok, toss live ammo into a trash can at an airport? good way to start a suspected security breach and shut the entire airport down. or, have the poor guy working the trash incinerator poop in his pants when they start cooking off.

this was Austin Bergstrom International Airport, in Austin, TX, by the way.

some TSA supervisor also implied that he could arrest me, which we all know is bogus. my experiences with TSA lead me to believe they have no idea about firearms regulations that they create, and make up their own as they go along.
 
Thanks everyone,

I dont have the original manufacures box, and some of the shells are handloads anyways. I think I'll try the tin and cardboard box approach. I wont be out too much if it dosent work. I'm not really worried about a small Alaskan airport, its flying back from SEA tac where I think I might have a problem. If I dont use the ammo, I'll pick up a special plastic shell case for the return trip.
Do you have to declare ammunition if its in check in baggage? I guess I will just to be on the safe side.

Happy Holidays
 
El Tejon,

Good point, I just double checked my bag for loose rounds. It was clean, but I did find a can of dip:D , all in all a win/win situation. Thanks for the heads up,

12GA00buck
 
After reading that whole thread I sat here wondering how 'Outlaws" would feel if someone made a copy of everything he said in that thread and sent it off to their Congressional Representative? Sending it to anyone in the TSA would be a total waste of time.
 
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