Air Travel May Be Down But Airport Gun Seizures Are Up

Air travel is down in the United States although it is slowly coming back. And while air travel is down that doesn't mean airport security is finding fewer loaded guns. In fact, in many cases airport security is finding guns at a much higher rate than they were before the coronavirus pandemic according to the Associated Press.

Officers seized just over 300 guns in July, or 15.3 guns for every million people screened, compared with 5.1 per million people in July of last year, the Transportation Security Administration said Monday.

TSA Administrator David Pekoske said there has been a significant increase in loaded guns at checkpoints. He said screeners are already working in conditions of heightened risks and that “no one should be introducing new ones.”

The number of loaded guns, Pekoske said, “is just an accident waiting to happen.”

According to the Associated Press, 80% of the guns found by airport security were loaded.

Gun seizures at Texas airports are near the top of the list according to the Dallas Morning News.

DFW International Airport tied for second nationally with 13 gun seizures last month, while Dallas Love Field ranked fifth with Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport at nine seizures each.

All of this is happening when gun purchases across the United States are breaking records. The coronavirus, protests, and looting have all made gun purchases important for many.