TSA finds 2 guns at Pittsburgh airport security checkpoint

Transportation Security Administration officers caught two guns Wednesday at the Pittsburgh International Airport security checkpoint.

The first gun, confiscated from a carry-on bag belonging to a West Newton man, was a loaded 9mm handgun. The second firearm was a loaded, antique .22-caliber handgun that belonged to a man from Clarksburg, W.Va.

The incidents were not related, TSA officials said.

Allegheny County Police confiscated both guns. When travelers bring guns to the checkpoint, their firearm concealed carry license is rescinded due to negligence.

Additionally, both men must pay fines after the incidents. Penalties can run up to $14,000.

Thus far in 2022, TSA officers have found 26 guns at the airport.

“The recent uptick in the number of guns that people are bringing to the airport in their carry-on bags is disappointing,” said Karen Keys-Turner, the airport’s TSA federal security director.

If travelers wish to transport firearms as checked baggage, they are permitted to do so if firearms are correctly packed and declared at the airline ticket counter. Checked firearms must be unloaded, locked and packed in a hard-sided case separate from ammunition.

Related:

• Guns seized at Pittsburgh airport down from record levels, but still a problem