CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In 2021, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said they seized 106 firearms at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, a significant spike from previous years.
According to data released Tuesday, TSA officers collected 254 firearms from travelers' carry-on baggage in 2021 at North Carolina airports, more than 40% of that total coming from the Queen City's hub.
In 2020, the TSA discovered only 55 firearms at CLT. In 2018 and 2019, the TSA seized 76 and 74 firearms respectively, showing a large uptick of incidents in 2021 at the Charlotte airport.
Many of the other North Carolina airports doubled or even tripled their collected totals in 2021, also.
For context, 585 million passengers and crew were screened by the TSA nationwide. In North Carolina, the TSA screened about 15.56 million people departing area airports, which was an 81% increase from 2020.
While this number can sound alarming, firearm seizures at Charlotte's airport don't rank it in the top 10 airports with the issue in the country.
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) - 507
- Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) - 317
- Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) - 245
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) - 196
- Nashville International Airport (BNA) - 163
- Denver International Airport (DEN) - 141
- Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) - 128
- Orlando International Airport (MCO) - 124
- Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) - 119
- Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) - 115
Data cited by the TSA shows a firearm is typically detected once for every 61,275 passengers who are screened in North Carolina airports by the organization.
When a firearm is seized, travelers may face civil penalties which can cost up to $13,900 a violation and it could cost the person their Trusted Traveler status and/or their TSA PreCheck. For those curious, having a concealed weapons permit doesn't make a difference when a firearm is put in a carry-on. Firearms can be transported via commercial air travel if it is unloaded and checked in a locked, hard-sided case. The firearm must be declared when bags are checked, too. More details on how to legally check a firearm can be found on the TSA's website.