HOW MANY GUNS WERE FOUND AT MONTANA AIRPORTS LAST YEAR?

The TSA is telling airport passengers to leave the gun at home.  Last year the TSA found 50 guns in carry-on luggage just at Montana airports.  In fact,  the TSA says last year was a record year for finding guns at airports.  In all, they say there were 6542 guns found at 262 airports nationwide.

The finding of 50 guns at Montana airports is a record.  Last year they found 45 guns.  At the Great Falls Airport,  five guns were found in carry-on luggage.  17 were found at the Billings airport,  eleven in Missoula, ten in Bozeman and seven at Glacier Park International airport in kalispell.  If you look back to 2018, 28 firearms were found at airports in Montana.

If you are wanting to take a gun on a trip, here is what the TSA suggests. First, declare that you have a gun,  make sure it is not loaded,  store it in a hard sided case and pack it with your checked luggage.  Last year, nationwide,  88% of the guns found at airports in the U.S. were loaded.

What does the TSA consider when deciding if a gun is loaded.  Here is the answer directly from the TSA website.

TSA considers a firearm to be "loaded" when both the firearm and its ammunition are accessible to the passenger. For example, if an individual has a firearm in accessible baggage and ammunition in his/her pocket, or any combination where the individual has access to both, the firearm is considered "loaded" for purposes of assessing a civil penalty.

And what happens if the TSA finds a gun?  They will confiscate it and turn it over to local authorities and those caught with a gun at a TSA checkpoint face a possible $15,000 fine.