Account of Flying with Firearms

Picch Trouble in Tucson... with bags opened completely away from the passenger, but no inspection notice placed inside of a gun case.
TUS --> LAX --> OAK --> PDX 2010-01-15	PDX --> LAX --> OAK --> TUS 2010-01-18

Luggage & Gear
Picch's luggage was a Pelican 1700 which was secured by two Abloy Protec PL 321 Padlocks. The case contained: one Mossberg 500, one Beretta Px4 Storm, a couple boxes of ammo, a bayonet for a M91/30, and a couple of misc tools.

Outbound Travel
At the airport everything started out ok, Picch got to the ticket counter and informed the ticket agent that he needed to declare some firearms and ammunition; she was ok with this. She presented the declaration form to fill out and put in the case. He opened the case for the agent and she placed the declaration form inside. When Picch asked if she would like to have the actions on the firearms opened to show they were unloaded she declined. He locked the case back up after she placed the declaration form inside and asked to be directed to the secondary screening area. The check-in staffer informed him that there wasn't one but if there was a problem he would be paged.

To properly elaborate on the details of what followed, i'll paste the full story in here using Picch's own words..

This is where the problems started, literally as I was putting my shoes back on after passing through the metal detector I was paged to go back to the ticket counter. I told the TSA agent that I was the person who was just paged; he suggested that I maybe go to my gate to see what the problem was to prevent having to go through security again. I then informed him that I was traveling with firearms and that my case probably needed to be opened. He then said that I needed to go back down to the ticket counter and pass through security again. As I was walking back down the ramp to the ticketing counter, the TSA agent caught up to me and said for future reference since they didn't have a secondary screening area that it was a good idea to hang out near the ticket counter for 10-15mins after they take my bags just in case they do need to get inside them to avoid having to go through security twice. I politely thanked him for the information and walked to the counter.

The ticket agent recognized me and said "they need your key to open your bag." I informed her that I needed to be present during the opening and screening of my bag per federal laws and was not willing to surrender my key. She walked away to and brought back a supervisor, I kindly explained to her that federal law prohibits me from surrendering my key and that I am required to be present during screening. I pulled out regulations from Southwest's website and from the TSA's website concerning firearms specifically pointing to the paragraph detailing me being present during screening. She seemed to be unaware of this requirement and said gave the typical response of "we'll bring the key right back to you, and that they were not allowed to bring me to the screening area."

I still persisted and refused to surrender my key. She walked away for a few minutes then came back and had me follow her to a staff only door on the floor below where a Tucson Airport Authority Police Officer met us (not security, but actual law enforcement). A person identifying herself as the TSA supervisor on duty came out and asked why I refused to surrender my key. I kindly explained that federal law says that I have the right and I am required to be present while my firearms are being screened and presented the paperwork I printed out to her which she read followed by the TAA Police Officer. The TSA supervisor told me that I was "misinterpreting" what was posted on their website and that these regulations do not apply to all airports depending on the circumstances. I told her that, the website does not state that, and that I'm simply trying to follow federal laws regarding my firearms. After a few minutes of jawing back and forth including her telling me that they could not bring my luggage to me to be screened in the middle of the airport, 2 more TSA officers came over.

The TSA supervisor said "we screen hundreds of firearms daily and passengers are not required to be present during screening" which I find somewhat hard to believe given how small the airport is. Eventually the TSA supervisor says "the baggage screening is separated by a clear glass window and that I could sit behind that." I said that was acceptable, I just wanted to be present while it was being screened, even if it was behind a window. She walked away and came back a few minutes later and said "we can't get you clearance to go to the screening area, either you surrender the key or the case doesn't go on the plane." One officer said asked "what are you worried about, you aren't getting in trouble by surrendering the key" which we argued about. Finally one of the TSA officers suggested "would you be ok with surrendering the key if I was present during the screening?" I asked if this was my only option, other than that my bag wasn't going to be allowed on the plane and I wasn't going to be allowed back during the screening. The TSA supervisor said "yes."

I reluctantly said yes and handed the key over. One officer and the TSA supervisor left to screen my bag leaving me with 2 other TSA officers and a Southwest supervisor. About 5 minutes later they came back with my key and said everything was fine. The TSA supervisor started to walk away and I stopped her and asked for her name. After a long pause she replied saying "Supervisor Smith." She was not even wearing the typical TSA blue button down shirt with a badge. She was wearing a generic TSA shirt with a badge patch sewn onto the shirt, so I'm somewhat doubting whether or not she was actually a supervisor.

This entire process took about an hour leaving me about 30mins to run through security to my flight. After passing through security again, I immediately looked up a phone number for the TSA (866-289-9673) and called. I actually got someone on the phone and explained the entire situation, she read back to me what I had told her to make sure she understood what I had said and said "so you were trying to travel with a firearm in your carryon luggage," I immediately stopped and corrected her. I actually had to do this twice which was somewhat odd. The women placed me on hold for a few minutes, I'm assuming she was asking someone a little more familiar with gun regulations, came back and said "yes you are required to be present during screening, I am forwarding this onto the person in charge of the TSA at Tucson International and they will be calling you within 5-7 business days." I am currently waiting for that phone call.

When Picch arrived at PDX baggage claim there was an individual with PDX security with his Pelican case. He had to present ID to him in order to claim it. To Picch this meant that somehow the bag was flagged as special... the airport staffer asked if he "was flying with guns or something" and Picch answered in the affermatice, which the other fellow thought was "cool." Picch opened the case as soon as he got to his friend's house to find everything present inside the case but no TSA inspection notice. The case was in perfect shape with the locks locked and no visible evidence of being tampered with.

Homebound Travel
The staff at PDX were breath of fresh air given the experience at TUS. Picch went to the ticket counter, declared the firearms, and filled out the form. He was asked if the firearms were unloaded, responded yes, and asked if the check-in agent would like to have the actions opened and show no rounds in the chamber. She said it wasn't necessary.

Picch was then directed to the screening area. The TSA agent noticed the Pelican case and asked if it contained firearms. Picch said that it did and the luggage was moved to the front of the screening line. After it was passed though the Rapid Scan, another TSA agent asked for the key. Picch was ok with presenting her the key to unlock the case, as he was only about 5 feet from the luggage while it was opened. As she opened the case, the other agents noticed the firearms and a few started to huddle around the case for a quick glimpse, but never blocking the view. Within about three minutes the agent placed an inspection notice in the case, locked it (which Picch was able to verify), and his key was presented back to him. He was then allowed to inspect the case to make sure it was locked properly.

The case went through normal baggage claim when returning to TUS, and Picch did not have to present ID like at PDX. The case was on time, still locked, with no evidence of tampering. It did have an inspection notice in it.

Final Details & Thoughts
Picch plans to report back with his complaint against "Supervisor Smith" at TUS if and when the TSA calls him back.

Follow-Up
Wonder of wonders, the TSA actually called Picch back to follow-up on his complaint regarding the incident in Tucson. Here is his account of that exchange. Again, in his own words...

The TSA finally called me back a month later, the name of the gentlemen I spoke to escapes me however he was from the TSA at TUS. I completely disagree with his reasoning for the situation, but couldn't bring myself to get into a screaming match with him. He was very well spoken, and was by far the most intelligent sounding TSA representative I've ever encountered. That being said, I still disagree with him 100%.

When I explained the situation and explained the information listed on the TSA website, he asked if was referring to the TSA Traveling with Firearms Page to which I agreed. He specifically asked if I was referring to the clause that states "We recommend that you provide the key or combination to the security officer if he or she needs to open the container. You should remain present during screening to take the key back after the container is cleared." To which I agreed. He stated to me that this wording states that "by remain present" you should remain at the ticket counter and not proceed through security to your gate while they are screening your bag, it doesn't imply that you are physically there for bag screening. He asked if I was familiar with airports such as PDX (he specifically mentioned Sky Harbor before a few years ago) that have rapid scan machines to scan all luggage right next to the ticket counter. There he said based off of that capability this allows passengers to be present while bags are screened to observe. However, since TUS bags are sent to a restricted access floor of the airport they (TUS) are "simply not setup to allow passengers to view screenings in any way of their bags." Due to this he flat out said airports are not required to allow passengers to view bag screenings that include firearms.

I also asked if the TSA in any way flags bags as special if they have a firearm in them and I gave the example of PDX security waiting with my Pelican case then required me to show ID. He said absolutely not, that Southwest must have flagged my bag as special in some way. He said the TSA will not mark in any way that a bag contains a firearm.

That is basically the summary of our conversation. We talked for almost an hour discussing this, but he came back to the same reasoning every time that some airports are just not physically setup for such a request and, are not required to do so.

After this I emailed the TSA (TSA-ContactCenter@dhs.gov) and asked for someone to contact me that wasn't affiliated with TUS. As of yet, I have not received a response. Following that, I wrote a letter to my Congresswomen asking for help on the matter. We'll see what comes of that.

Update: On March 25th, 2010 someone from the TSA finally got back to Picch. Here was their message:

Thank you for your electronic message of February 15, 2010, to the Transportation Security Administration Contact Center (TSA) concerning the screening of your firearm. You requested clarification regarding TSA's policy concerning screening of a checked bag containing a firearm.

The TSA website states that a passenger should remain present during the screening of his firearm to take possession of the key once the container is cleared. It does not state that the passenger must witness the screening of the firearm. At many airports, such as Tucson International Airport (TUS), the screening area is not located in an area accessible to the public. While the procedures are the same everywhere, the interpretation of those procedures results in some variation from airport to airport. TUS followed standard operating procedures when screening your firearm.

We sincerely apologize for any confusion caused by the way the information is interpreted on TSA's website. Thank you for your inquiry and I hope this information is helpful.

Sincerely yours,

Chad Bash
Assistant General Manager for Communications and Resolution
Office of Security Operations

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...

Four Stars	check-in - no hassle, no delay screening - in full view, lock and unlock yourself luggage - all on time and intact
Three Stars	check-in - 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 - 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 - 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
half-star results are possible... naturally, they involve partial or mitigated problems that somehow fall in-between the above categories