The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Down Range Cafe => Topic started by: Timothy on April 06, 2020, 02:11:09 PM
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Any issues I need to know about to pack a firearm in my checked bag?
Proper container?
Check in?
Paperwork?
And do I need to worry about a hold over at O?Hare?
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1. Unloaded.
2. No ammunition in the same bag.
3. Lock for the bag
4. Declare it at check in.
5. Sign off that you have an unloaded firearm.
6. Expect them to look at it like they know what they are doing (really funny sometimes) when they inspect it to confirm it is unloaded.
Concerning the container I don't really know. they say it has to be appropriate or whatever...but they don't give specs for the container. I think it may have to be hardsided. I used an old Bushmaster plastic box once which is really flaky...lock in the middle but you can pull the ends up and it got through. They even looked at the gun and said it was nice....
I would put it in something that you can't jimmy open for a look see. I've lost pieces parts that ride along in the case with the guns more than once.
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The gun case must be hardsided and lockable, either with its own lock or a padlock.
Ammunition separate and in factory box.
Check the ammunition regulations with the airport and the airline. TSA has one rule, but I have found that sometimes the airport and airlines will be less.
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Does the baggage need to be hard sided?
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No, but trust me it should be. Also you can not use a tsa approved lock. They can not have access to it, in fact its a felony on them if they do.
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The suitcase can be either hard or soft side, but the gun case must be hard.
http://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition (http://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition)
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Get in touch with the airport you're leaving from and the one you'll be arriving at to see if they have any additional restrictions. I heard of people getting in trouble because they declared they had a gun, but did it after they got in a certain line or to a certain area.
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Your destination may not seem necessary, until you get ready to come home. I ran into that one trip. Flew from Minneapolis, MN to Phoenix, AZ. All went great. Then it came time to come home, and everything I did going down, TSA rules and Minneapolis more restrictive, was not in compliance with Phoenix departure. After some talking I was allowed to return as was.
I have shared my little "Ammunition In The Carry On" joy in the past, but almost as bad is when you are sitting in the boarding area, with 150 other sheep waiting for the railcar to pull in, you see two suits walk up to the podium with the clipboard, and agent at the podium pages your butchered name. Soon you realize that you are surrounded, or faced, by the Captain of the plane, two TSA agents, an airport representative, an airline representative, and off to the side are two airport security officers.
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I've heard the ammo can cause more issues in different states than the gun.
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MA to MI thru Chicago and back, no ammo.
If I fly out of RI then it?s a no go...
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I haven't air traveled with firearms since before Sept.11, but on a tip from Rob Leatham, I repurposed a Sears metal tool box to my traveling firearm container, locked with a brass keyed lock... in those days where your luggage might spend an hour on the circular conveyor... I don't remember an " unloaded firearms" ticket visible
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I haven't air traveled with firearms since before Sept.11, but on a tip from Rob Leatham, I repurposed a Sears metal tool box to my traveling firearm container, locked with a brass keyed lock... in those days where your luggage might spend an hour on the circular conveyor... I don't remember an " unloaded firearms" ticket visible
Now that red tag is just put inside your bag, so when it gets inspected they see the tag and know the firearm in the box is ok.
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Mike, I believe that was the policy back then... after those couple of trips to Area 6 matches in North Carolina, I found it more convenient to ride with someone
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Mike, I believe that was the policy back then... after those couple of trips to Area 6 matches in North Carolina, I found it more convenient to ride with someone
That is one of the issues with flying with guns and ammo. The rules change. TSA is fairly stable, and they publish their changes - Like where they put the tags, where the bags are picked up, etc. The bigger issue is the local airports and airlines that are allowed to modify the TSA rules, as long as they go stricter. You never know what their rules will be, or the way one will be interpreted by whoever is in charge that day.
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That last sentence says it all.