Knives, guns … and a sledgehammer? Here’s some of what TSA found at Idaho checkpoints
Colorful knives; heavy, blunt weapons; peanut butter; and a bottle of wine were displayed on a long table Wednesday at the Boise Airport, showing items you really can’t bring in your carry-on luggage.
The Transportation Security Administration revealed its top 10 prohibited items found at Idaho airports last year, including knives and guns found in Boise (one passenger in September had both a knife and a firearm magazine in one carry-on).
“There is no upside to bringing your firearm in carry-on luggage,” TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers told reporters. “There is only downside. Please keep that in mind if you like to travel with your firearm.”
A Sun Valley passenger brought a slingshot to the airport. Idaho Falls passengers were caught with a handsaw and a sledgehammer.
“Did the passenger forget that no in-flight construction projects are allowed?” the TSA asked in its news release.
There are options if you find yourself in the airport with an item you shouldn’t have. People can put prohibited items in their car or a checked bag, give them to whoever accompanied them to the airport or voluntarily surrender them.
The most common prohibited item officers see is water bottles, Dankers said, which can be easy to leave behind. But officers have seen people lose expensive bottles of alcohol. Dankers said some of the weapons found in Idaho the past year were expensive or had “beautiful” or “decorative” handles.
“Some of these types of knives actually do have sentimental value to the travelers,” Dankers said.
Most of this is preventable. Not only are there signs at the airport telling people to leave their guns at home, but many of these items can go through checked luggage.
Firearms, for example, must be unloaded and placed in a locked, hard-sided case in checked baggage, according to a TSA handout.
Despite the signs, Idaho set a record this year for firearms discovered by TSA officers — 64 total. Boise and Idaho Falls set records with 49 and 13 firearms each, respectively. Only the Pocatello and Magic Valley airports went all year without a gun in carry-on luggage.
“I don’t think any excuse is good enough,” Dankers said. “… Common sense would say firearms should never be on a plane.”
