Number of guns found at Tennessee airports hits high in 2022

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — More than 350 guns have been found in passengers’ carry-on luggage at security checkpoints at Tennessee’s major airports this year, marking an all-time high, federal officials said.

The 353 guns found so far this year at airports in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga and the Tri-Cities area have surpassed the 283 weapons discovered in 2021 and exceeded the total of 162 guns found in 2020, Transportation Security Administration spokesman Mark Howell said in a news release Tuesday.

The statewide total has more than doubled over the past five years, the TSA said. Nashville International Airport is leading with 206 firearms found in 2022.

Travelers face criminal and civil penalties for bringing firearms to a security checkpoint. Guns can be transported on a commercial aircraft only if they are unloaded, packed in a locked, hard-sided case and placed in checked baggage, the TSA said.

The civil penalty can go up to $14,950 for each violation, the TSA said.