A good rule of thumb: Don’t bring your gun to the airport.
Tell that to some of the folks passing through Orlando International Airport, which, in 2018, ranked No. 5 for having the most firearm discoveries out of the 249 airports across the nation. In fact, according to Transportation Security Administration officials, a total of 123 guns were found at the airport – a 29-gun increase from the previous year.
That’s out of the almost 814 million passengers and crew members who passed through TSA screening last year, about two million travelers a day, representing a 5.5 percent increase from 2017, according to TSA. It also represented a 7 percent firearm detection increase from the previous year.
Overall, 4,239 firearms – a record amount – were discovered in carry-on bags at checkpoints across the U.S., 3,656 of which were loaded.
The top 10:
1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL): 298 found; 253 loaded.
2. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW): 219 found; 193 loaded.
3. Phoenix Sky Harbor International Aiport (PHX): 129 found; 120 loaded.
4. Denver International Airport (DEN): 126 found; 95 loaded.
5. Orlando International Airport (MCO): 123 found; 112 loaded.
6. George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH): 117 found; 115 loaded.
7. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL): 96 found; 80 loaded.
8. Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS): 93 found; 76 loaded.
9. Dallas Love Field Airport (DAL): 89 found; 83 loaded.
10. Nashville International Airport (BNA): 86 found; 80 loaded.
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This article appears in Feb 6-12, 2019.