KNOXVILLE, Tennessee — Transportation Security Administration personnel seized a loaded pistol Monday from a passenger's carry-on bag at McGhee Tyson Airport.
It's the sixth weapons seizure this year at the Knoxville airport. In all of 2019, pre-COVID-19, there were 26 firearms seized there, according to TSA.
Screeners found the gun in the passenger's luggage about 6:30 a.m., according to TSA's Mark Howell. It was a Springfield .40-caliber handgun with a loaded magazine.
Police took the bag and escorted the passenger away.
Firearms are not allowed in carry-on bags.
You can put one in checked baggage if you alert the airline, it's in a proper carrying case and it's unloaded, according to TSA.
"Even with much lower than normal passenger numbers, we continue to find firearms at a very high rate at security checkpoints,” said Steve Wood, TSA federal security director for Tennessee, in a statement.
“Passengers must remember they’re responsible for the contents of bags and our advice is they thoroughly inspect all personal belongings to make sure there are no illegal or prohibited items before coming to the airport.”