Flying with guns on Continental

[Chris]

a co-worker i was flying with once asked me if i was selected for a random search, or if i was flagged as a terrorist or something. i told him that i admitted to them that i had an unloaded firearm in my bags. when i take the appropriate steps in transporting anything, i shouldn't be perceived by others as a possible terrorist.

[jimlongley]

"i don't think yelling, "hey bill, we've got a firearm in this one" across the terminal is very professional."



I'm actually not diggin' this trend either...Not sure that this does anything but aggravate, intimidate and generally make everyone within earshot uncomfortable with anything after that point...

Maybe Jim could eleborate on why this could be equivocated to yelling "Bingo, I found one! Where's my bonus!" mentality...

Sorry Jim, you know I'm onboard with a lot of things...I still am, but this kinda pushes a button with me, because it has happened to me on numerous times...I blow it off, ignore it, just so that no one sees or gets satisfaction thinking they are embarrasing me for some reason...I just file it away knowing if I go back through there to know it's going to be a big deal to them...Not me...At least I won't let them know it irritates me slightly...

I have to tell you, several times through Atlanta, the TSA folks were even trying to ask me "Why are YOU carrying a gun!"...That was always the low point of my trips...I ignored them...Filed my complaints, and let it go...

I'm kinda glad I don't have to do that anymore...

Sorry if I went negative...Just throwing my dos centavos into the fray...

Well, like I mentioned above, except for the two incidents, one not involving guns at all, I haven't really had a negative experience with TSA, unless you count my former employment there as one long one.

When transporting guns, I have been treated politely and have not had anyone yell anything about my guns across terminals. I have had pleasant conversations both as a TSA screener and as a passenger talking to screeners and have never been asked "why do YOU have a gun?' (that happened to me once in the Navy, and it was a STOOPID cop, who hadn't noticed that I was a GUNNERS' MATE, but that's a whole 'nother story)

The time I found the imitation IED, so little noise was made that even screeners working in the same room didn't know what was happening until after it was over. And that one is also a whole 'nother story.

Yelling anything about passengers' luggage or its contents was and is very verboten - one of our people got sent home for waving around a female passenger's "stress reliever" one time, and was only not fired because the process hadn't been settled yet. (Actually that thing was amazing, but that also . . .)

Most of the yelling I ever heard was either coded, different numbers shouted out, or "BREACH" which shut the whole airport down.

OTOH, I have seen ticket agents wave guns around and shout up and down counters about them, but they are airline employees, not TSA.

[GlockenHammer]

I'm not sure if this was TSA or the airlline, but when arriving in Denver for a hunting trip, my rifle case was hand carried into the baggage area and my claim check verified. I really appreciated that nice touch.

I hate walking through baggage areas and seeing rifle cases sitting there waiting for a passenger that didn't arrive on the same flight. In most cases, these items are not secured in any way.

[Liberty]

I fly fairly often, and have noticed that the new TSA run Screeners have evolved into a much more polite and proffessional operation than they were before. I really want to dislike these people, they are inconeniencing me and invading my privacy. I've run into more arogence and bullying from the local police working the airports than from these guys.