Albuquerque Sunport TSA "Normal"

Above, the TSA checkpoint at the Albuquerque Sunport. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

A trip is planned for next month to go to Houston, Texas for the NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits. Mitch Geriminsky and I will be flying out of the Albuquerque Sunport.

How is Sunport faring during this Chuck Schumer-led Democrat partial shutdown?

KRQE News 13 reported:

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The ongoing partial government shutdown has resulted in longer-than-average wait times at airport security checkpoints operated by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) around the country. As a result, the federal government has deployed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to aid with security at some airports.

Despite the major travel shifts being seen at airports across the country, as of Monday, operations at the Albuquerque International Sunport remain unchanged.

“The Sunport has not experienced staffing shortages related to TSA, and checkpoint operations continue as normal,” said Albuquerque International Sunport Spokesperson Diana Lopez.

Getting back from Houston may be a different story if the shutdown has not ended by then.  

To read more, go here.

How Early Should You Get to the Airport Amid TSA Delays?

How Early Should You Get to the Airport Amid TSA Delays? video by Today.

Summary:

With passengers facing TSA lines with wait times that are hourslong at some airports across the United States, NBC’s Brian Cheung joins TODAY to share tips for navigating the ongoing travel chaos. Tips include how early to get to the airport, how to save time before you fly and what to do if you missed your flight due to the extended process.

 

What Happens When The TSA Intercepts Firearms At US Airports

Above, the TSA checkpoint at the Albuquerque Sunport. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Bringing a firearm through airport security (TSA) can be a major problem if one does not follow proper procedures. I've never had the need to bring a gun while traveling by air.

It is legal to bring a firearm in one's luggage as long as it is locked unloaded in a hard-sided case and declared with the baggage officer.

But not following the procedures can get one heavily fined, arrested and the gun confiscated.

Here's the official TSA procedures for transporting firearms and ammunition.

MSN posted an article on what happens. 

They start with:

As US travelers take advantage of their Second Amendment rights, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) frequently discovers firearms at security checkpoints throughout the US. By not declaring their firearms, travelers can potentially face legal issues for not following the proper procedures.

While the TSA does not confiscate or seize firearms if a passenger attempts to bring one through the security checkpoint or packs one in their carry-on luggage, the TSA will contact local law enforcement to take possession of the firearm safely. The passenger may be arrested or issued a citation, depending on local laws.

To read the full article, go here. 

Record Number of Guns Seized At Airports

Long before the creation of the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) by the federal government in the aftermath of September 11, I would occasionally pack a pistol in my luggage.

Those were the days when one could check in their locked luggage at the airport. Now, one cannot check in their locked luggage. It has to be unlocked.

One can still fly with their gun in their checked luggage, but the rules are a little complex. I don't even bother traveling by air with a gun anymore. It's just not worth the hassle.

The New York Post has an article on the record number of guns seized by the TSA. People not following the rules will be fined and have their firearms confiscated.

The article begins with:

US flyers were caught packing heat at record levels last year, the Transportation Security Administration said Monday.

TSA agents seized 6,542 guns, almost all of which were loaded, at the nation’s airports in 2022, an average of 18 a day — the highest ever recorded, the agency said.

“What we see in our checkpoints really reflects what we’re seeing in society, and in society, there are more people carrying firearms nowadays,” TSA Administrator David Pekoske said.

But Pekoske insisted that the figures are no indication of a potential spike in would-be hijackings or terrorism. The bulk of the gun-toting travelers appeared to simply forget they had a gun, he said.

The number of guns intercepted at US airports has risen every year since 2010, except for the pandemic-tainted year of 2020, when air travel dipped, the agency said. Last year’s gun grab was about a 10 percent increase over the record-setting year before.

To read more, go here.

To fly with a firearm and ammo, the TSA has a webpage with the procedures. To view it, go here.

TSA Confiscated Record Number of Guns In 2022

Above, a plane being readied at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Back in the good old days, when airline travelers were able to lock their suitcases before checking it in at the check-in counter, I would sometimes have my pistol (unloaded, of course) inside my luggage. 

Since 9/11, the TSA requires all check-in luggage to be unlocked unless a TSA-approved lock is used. One can still bring their firearm(s), but it is under certain guidelines. Since this, I have not brought a firearm with me on trips. I am more fearful that a not-so-honest baggage handler might steal it.

CBS News reports that 6,301 guns, some loaded, have been confiscated by the TSA for not following the rules in 2022, so far.

They wrote:

Transportation Security Administration officers have confiscated 6,301 firearms from airport passengers so far in 2022 – the highest number recorded since the agency's inception. Of those guns taken at airport security checkpoints, 88% were loaded, the agency announced Friday.  

The TSA said that it expects to have confiscated about 6,600 firearms by the end of year, which would mark a 10.5% increase from the 5,972 firearms seized in 2021, which was also a record. 

The agency also reported Friday that it was raising the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation from $13,910 to $14,950. 

The top 5 airports for firearm stops so far this year, according to TSA, were: 

1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport – 438
2. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport – 371
3. Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport – 286
4. Nashville International Airport – 203
5. Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport – 184

Nashville had the highest rate of firearm confiscation per capita, according to a TSA spokesperson.

To read more, go here. 

TSA Expects Over 20 Million Passengers During Thanksgiving Holiday

One of the top things on my list of "the last thing I'd ever do" items is to travel by air during the holidays.

During normal years, the crush at airports of holiday travelers does not appeal to me in the least. If I were to travel during the holidays, I would be by RV instead. At least one has more control of things.

TravelPulse has an article stating that 20 million air travelers are expected to be screened by the TSA during the Thanksgiving holiday period. 

They wrote:

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced it expects to screen about 20 million passengers during the Thanksgiving holiday travel period.

Running between November 19 and November 28, the TSA said the Thanksgiving travel period would see busy airport security checkpoints nationwide, but it was prepared to handle the increase in passenger volume.

TSA officials revealed the busiest days during the holiday travel period are the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and the Sunday afterward. While the number of travelers this year is not expected to reach pre-pandemic levels, it is expected to be notably higher in the weeks leading to the November holiday.

To read more, go here. 

Biden's COVID-19 "Action Plan" Doubles TSA Mask Fines

Above, a flight to Salt Lake City last year. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The authoritarian "action plan" of His Fraudulency Joe Biden announced yesterday includes several edicts.

Yahoo! News has listed them in an article posted yesterday. 

They start with:

• Biden's Covid plan released Thursday will double fines for travelers who violate TSA mask mandates.

• It raises the minimum fine to $500 and the maximum fine to $3000 for repeat offenders.

• Clashes over masks make up more than 75% of unruly passenger complaints during air travel.

President Biden's COVID-19 action plan released Thursday will double fines for travelers who violate the TSA mask mandates covering air travel and some modes of public transportation.

Passengers who do not comply with the mask-wearing policies currently face fines starting at $250 and increasing up to $1,500 for repeat offenders. The new guidelines will raise the minimum fine to $500 and the maximum fine to $3000.

To read more, go here. 

How 9/11 Changed Air Travel

Above, Godzilla at the 2001 Tokyo International Film Festival. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One week from today, it will be 20 years since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the U.S.

As the attacks were carried out by using airline planes as weapons, drastic security changes at the nation's airports were implemented and they are still with us today.

My first trip to Japan was a month later in late October 2001. At that time, the airports had National Guard soldiers stationed in the terminals. My mom told me that travelers had to be at the airport four hours before boarding. Well, that was unnecessary, as it turned out. So I spent over three hours in the United Airlines terminal at LAX bored stiff. LAX was almost like a ghost town in the terminal.

At least the rest of the trip went well (even despite getting a 24-hour flu bug while there) and I attended the Tokyo International Film Festival's premiere screening of Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack.

Japan Today posted an article on how 9/11 changed air travel and how we have more security and less privacy.

They start it with:

DALLAS - Ask anyone old enough to remember travel before Sept 11, 2001, and you're likely to get a gauzy recollection of what flying was like.

There was security screening, but it wasn’t anywhere near as intrusive. There were no long checkpoint lines. Passengers and their families could walk right to the gate together, postponing goodbye hugs until the last possible moment. Overall, an airport experience meant far less stress.

That all ended when four hijacked planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania.

The worst terror attack on American soil led to increased and sometimes tension-filled security measures in airports across the world, aimed at preventing a repeat of that awful day. The cataclysm has also contributed to other changes large and small that have reshaped the airline industry — and, for consumers, made air travel more stressful than ever.

Two months after the attacks, President George W. Bush signed legislation creating the Transportation Security Administration, a force of federal airport screeners that replaced the private companies that airlines were hiring to handle security. The law required that all checked bags be screened, cockpit doors be reinforced, and more federal air marshals be put on flights.

There has not been another 9/11. Nothing even close. But after that day, flying changed forever.

To read more, go here.