Can you take a live lobster through airport security? Yes, but you have to follow the Transportation Security Administration’s rules on how to do it.
That’s what one airline passenger in Boston found out this past weekend after TSA agents found a 20-pound lobster in that flier’s carry-on bag.
TSA spokesman Michael McCarthy told The Boston Globe the jumbo-sized lobster found by an agent was the "largest" he's ever seen. The agency posted a photo of the lobster to its Twitter account.
But big or small, the crustaceans are allowed to be taken through security.
.@TSA officers are skilled at screening all sorts of items in checked baggage...including this 20+ pound lobster at @BostonLogan pic.twitter.com/euhyyO6F7V
— Michael McCarthy (@TSAmedia_MikeM) June 26, 2017
“I cannot speak to any airline policies, but TSA has no prohibition on transporting lobsters,” McCarthy added in a statement to the Globe. “It’s actually fairly common in the New England region.”
Still, just as with liquids, lobsters must be packed appropriately. The TSA’s website details the procedure, saying live lobsters must be transported in a "clear, plastic, spill-proof container." The agency also advises fliers to check with their airline about carry-on policies at individual carriers.
As for the 20-pounder that was brought to Boston Logan’s Terminal C on Sunday, it was packed in a cooler, though McCarthy told the Globe that the lobster "cooperated quite nicely with the screening process" before being allowed to continue on its way.
"I would be shocked if this isn't the biggest lobster TSA has screened, although I can't say for certain," McCarthy added to NPR.