By Steve Neavling
For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted travel, the number of firearms intercepted at U.S. airport security checkpoints has declined.
In 2024, the TSA stopped 6,678 firearms at checkpoints nationwide, down slightly from the 6,737 seized in 2023.
“One firearm at a checkpoint is too many,” TSA Administrator David Pekoske said in a news release. “Firearms present a safety risk for our employees and everyone else at the checkpoint. It’s also costly and slows down operations.”
The drop in firearm interceptions corresponds with the TSA screening more than 904 million passengers in 2024, resulting in a rate of 7.4 guns intercepted per million travelers, down from 7.8 in 2023.
Among the guns seized in 2024, 94% were loaded. When TSA officers detect a firearm at a checkpoint, local law enforcement is contacted to remove the individual and firearm from the area. Depending on state and local laws, the traveler may face arrest or a citation.
Offenders also face steep penalties from the TSA, including fines of up to $14,950, revocation of TSA PreCheck eligibility for at least five years, and mandatory enhanced screening procedures.
As in previous years, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) led the nation in firearm seizures, with 440 guns intercepted in 2024. It was followed by:
- Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW): 390
- George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH): 272
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX): 247
- Nashville International Airport (BNA): 188
The decline in 2024 marks a departure from a years-long trend of increasing firearm seizures. Between 2008 and 2022, the number of intercepted guns rose annually, except for 2020, when the pandemic curtailed travel.
In 2022, the TSA set a record with 6,542 firearms discovered — an average of 18 per day. The majority of those firearms, 88%, were loaded. By contrast, only 926 firearms were intercepted in 2008.
