TSA supervisor Rhonda Spurgin talks at the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport about items that are prohibited in carry-on bags.Chattanooga Airport set a record last year for the number of guns discovered in passenger bags at the security checkpoint, an official said today.
Mark Howell, a Transportation Security Administration regional spokesman, said 10 guns were found at the Lovell Field checkpoint last year, double the prior year.
Howell said there were more than 2,200 such instances nationwide.
TSA supervisor Rhonda Spurgin talks at the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport about items that are prohibited in carry-on bags.He attributed the number to a "culture of rushing" by people who are traveling. Also, he cited people who are packing bags for fliers and don't know TSA regulations.
In addition, there are more people traveling than in the past, and there are more who are carrying firearms, Howell said.
Howell was at the airport to demonstrate the proper way to travel by air with a hand gun or rifle.
He said that a firearm should be in its own locked case and declared by the traveler at the ticket counter. Guns should never be taken to the checkpoint, Howell said.
See more in Friday's Times Free Press.