Account of Flying with Firearms
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W
From Florida to Texas on Southwest... and in neither airport was this passenger taken to a secondary screening area. |
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FLL
--> MSY
--> DAL
2009-08-04   |
DAL
--> MSY --> FLL
2009-08-11  |
Luggage & Gear
W traveled with a Pelican 1560 case that was secured with two Abloy PL321 Executive series padlocks. Inside the case was his gun in a zippered pouch and ammo in a small cardboard box. Way to go, i must say, for using a really fine hard case and perhaps the best travel locks that i have ever encountered.Outbound Travel
The airline staff acted completely indifferent and followed all the rules/procedures quickly and efficiently. When W stepped up to the counter, he mentioned that he was declaring a firearm. The attendant brought a Firearm(s) Inspection Tag to fill out, asked for ID, and then had W put the tag inside the luggage and lock it. He was not asked to demonstrate that the weapon was unloaded. In fact, the staffer didn't even look inside the luggage.No criticisms or difficulties were made concerning the locked bag, and W observed no attempt to mark the outside of the luggage.
Interestingly, on this trip W was not asked to visit a secondary screening area as part of the process, nor was he paged to one at any later point during his time in the airport.
Nothing of note happened in the airport, during passenger screening, boarding, or the air travel to Dallas. W's luggage arrived on time. Other than normal wear and tear, there were no signs of forced entry of any kind and everything in the bag was left just as it was.
Homebound Travel
Everything went smoothly this time as well. The only differences were...W was told that he should next time use the normal check-in process instead of the express check-in process (even though no signs indicated it was necessary and he had previously used the express check-in at FLL with no issues)
The attendant initially stated that one should carry the firearm in a locked hard-sided case when she noticed it was in a zippered pouch. W pointed out that the actual luggage was the hard-sided case and that it was secured with two locks. She seemed to understand, but looked back to the other attendant (possibly a supervisor?) who was standing behind her, who confirmed that it was OK with a nod. The Southwest staffer handling things may have been new, or perhaps just didn't deal with firearms normally.
Just as before, there were no criticisms or comments concerning the locked bags... nor were there any attempts to mark the luggage in any way.
On this return journey, as before, W was not asked to visit a secondary TSA screening area during his check-in, nor was he paged to one at any later time.The return flight was totally ordinary.
W's luggage was the first off the belt; like before, nothing but normal wear and tear; no signs of attempted break-in or tampering, and everything was left inside just as it had been organized and arranged before.
Final Details & Thoughts
Nothing particular of note. This trip went about as smoothly as it possibly could have. Based solely on this travel experience, W has stated that he would rate Southwest Airlines an A+ when it comes to traveling with firearms.
Air Travel Ratings
If you don't have the time or the desire to read the full text of someone's account of air travel, you can simply refer to the rating shown at the conclusion of each portion of that person's journey. The following criteria are used in assigning these ratings...
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check-in
- no
hassle, no delay |
 Three Stars |
check-in
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some delay or mild hassle screening - somewhat obscured, locking and unlocking yourself or it's done directly in front of you luggage - all on time and intact |
 Two Stars |
check-in
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major delay or major hassle screening - in a room or area that you could not enter and could barely observe luggage - luggage opened non-destructively |
 One Star |
check-in
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flight missed or passenger delayed from flying, properly packed items denied
as luggage screening - luggage unlocked and opened totally in another area fully removed from you luggage - destructive entry into luggage and/or tampering with firearms |
 Zero Stars |
This is a special category for outright theft, loss, or damage of firearms during air travel |
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half-star
results are possible... naturally, they involve partial or mitigated problems
that somehow fall in-between
the above categories
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