TSA intercepted 17 guns per day in first half of 2022

As the volume of airline passengers returning to the skies continues to climb, officers at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) have prevented more than 3,000 firearms from entering aircraft passenger cabins this year.

On average, TSA stopped 17 firearms each day at checkpoints since the beginning of the year. If that pace continues, firearm catches will eclipse the current full year-record of 5,972 firearms intercepted at the nation’s checkpoints in 2021.

2022 is set to surpass the 2021 and 2019 records for gun detections by TSA. In 2021, the record set by the previous year was broken in October.

The agency relies on security scanning and detection technology to identify weapons and explosives in baggage. Various airports have installed computed tomography (CT) scanners in the past year. The technology can detect prohibited and dangerous items in closed baggage.