Ammunition in checked luggage

[leahcim 680]

Anyone have experience doing this?

 

From what I read on TSA website, ammunition can travel in the original cardboard retail package inside of checked luggage, does not need to be in a locked box.  And needs to be declared to TSA.

 

USAir website says limited to 11 Lbs/5KG per passenger. 

 

Sounds fairly straightforward--am I missing anything?

Found 100Rnd boxes of Winchester .45 for about $43.50/100Round box (with tax) at WalMart--price seemed not too bad for now.

 

Thanks!

[Celraysoda 7]

Yup. No issues. I had about 1000 rounds and 3 bricks of primers. I called the airline ahead and they seemed uninterested. Just wrapped in a bag or kept in the manufacturers box, they said.

[efl15 0]

After looking at the US Airways website, it appears that only firearms need to be declared, not ammunition. This has also been my experience with American Airlines.

[leahcim 680]

You are saying I do not need to inform TSA?

[Celraysoda 7]

You are saying I do not need to inform TSA?

Nope. This reminds me of a trick I heard. Buy a cheap starter pistol for $35 online. TSA recognizes them as firearms. Every time you travel, pack it and declare it.

 

They will never lose your bag and it would be first off the plane when you go to baggage claim.

[Maksim 1,504]

Nope. This reminds me of a trick I heard. Buy a cheap starter pistol for $35 online. TSA recognizes them as firearms. Every time you travel, pack it and declare it.

 

They will never lose your bag and it would be first off the plane when you go to baggage claim.

 

 

That does not work.  None of the times I flew with guns did my luggage come first.  In fact, they are not supposed to mark your bag anything special.  The only thing I have is the little orange TSA sticker on the white baggage tag under handle.

 

Ammo is up to the airlines, most follow TSA and have 11 lb limit... however many airlines are different.  

 

Every round in its own little section, cannot be loose in a bag.  Reloading boxes, original boxes are fine.  22LR is a good one cause technically it is still lose, in those bulk packs unless it is in packs of 50.

 

Frontier even lets you fly with loaded magazines, as long as the magazine is taped up.  Others do not allow it.

 

I have declared it .... it will not hurt. 

[Celraysoda 7]

That does not work.  None of the times I flew with guns did my luggage come first.  In fact, they are not supposed to mark your bag anything special.  The only thing I have is the little orange TSA sticker on the white baggage tag under handle.

 

Ammo is up to the airlines, most follow TSA and have 11 lb limit... however many airlines are different.  

 

Every round in its own little section, cannot be loose in a bag.  Reloading boxes, original boxes are fine.  22LR is a good one cause technically it is still lose, in those bulk packs unless it is in packs of 50.

 

Frontier even lets you fly with loaded magazines, as long as the magazine is taped up.  Others do not allow it.

 

I have declared it .... it will not hurt.

 

Aww man. I was hoping it would. How about the random baggage checks? I thought these bags were segregated and monitored differently so they didn't get "lost".

[ECShooter 0]

 

You are saying I do not need to inform TSA?

Nope. This reminds me of a trick I heard. Buy a cheap starter pistol for $35 online. TSA recognizes them as firearms. Every time you travel, pack it and declare it.

 

 

They will never lose your bag and it would be first off the plane when you go to baggage claim.

Not true my friend. Traveling back from an elk hunt in 2009, the airline and TSA could not locate my coyote brown pelican case with my rifle for over two hours. It was finally located on another bag claim belt on the other side of the terminal. Maybe it has changed in the past 4 years and maybe it was the absolutely LOUSY TSA and Newark Union idiots that work there, but I would be careful and make sure you are aware of who to call in the event of a hiccup. Same happened to a friend of mine with a handgun in Orlando, no one cared at the airport or TSA, though the FBI was all over it. Mine was found, my buddy's wasn't found ever.

[Maksim 1,504]

Aww man. I was hoping it would. How about the random baggage checks? I thought these bags were segregated and monitored differently so they didn't get "lost".

 

 

This is merely my experience, so I cannot say with certainty.  I have flown with guns out of and into Las Vegas, Orlando, Philadelphia, Atlantic City and Trenton.

 

In most airports all airports I flew out of... the bag was declared, was either taken directly to TSA, where it was checked, then it was just put on the regular checked bag process.  The thefts would not be by TSA, but rather the baggage handlers, as I was told by one TSA guy I was speaking to in PHL as he was admiring my 2011. =)

 

They recommended not having your bag stick out as a "gun bag".  That is why my guns go in a small box inside my main checked bag with clothes, etc.... and separately a "shooting bag", which does not have any tickers or labels on it, like brownells, etc. 

 

So, for the new people, the process is, you go to the checked baggage counter or ticket counter and tell them you need to declare and check in an unloaded firearm.  They will give you a tag, that you fill out, and either put (1. Inside the gun case. 2. On top of the gun case inside your bag 3. Anywhere in your checked bag), depending on the airline.  You sign it, lock your gun case, put it in your luggage. Then, they will take your bag or ask you to take it to TSA.  

About 50% of the time TSA opened up my luggage, and only once did they ask to see inside the gun case.  Not once did they play with the gun to verify it was unloaded.  The baggage ticket counter person can ask to show them it is unloaded, and it only happened once in Atlantic City, but clearly she did not know what she was looking for.

 

In any case, I have NEVER had any issues flying with guns in checked bag.  As far as anyone knows, nothing out of ordinary in your baggage, as only TSA is supposed to know, when screening your bag of a gun case and the "checked gun" tag in the case. 

[njpilot 671]

Agreed. My bag has never come out first. At EWR, the ticket agent walks you to the TSA office. The first few times they always asked for the key and I wasn't allowed in the room, waited in the hallway. The last 2 times they didn't ask for the key.

 

Flying home from Phoenix and Salt Lake, the ticket agent gave me the form, some wanted to see the gun wasn't loaded, others didn't even ask.

 

2 weeks ago, coming home from Vegas, they didn't ask to see if it was unloaded. They asked about ammo and told them it's in a shoe. They said it has to be locked with the gun. I said no it doesn't. She asked someone else who said it needs to be in the original box. I said it's in the box, in a shoe. Se said it has to be locked or someone could steal it. I had to squeeze it into the steel lock box my firearm goes in.

 

Some people at the airlines are good and some make it up as they go along.

[plode 0]

If anyone has first hand experience at Atlantic City, please post how that went. I'm flying to FL and am taking a pistol(if the NICS check gets done in time) in my checked bag next week. I planned on locking the gun case with a cable to the inside of the bag.

 

I had stuff stolen out of my bag in Orlando about a year ago.

 

I know exactly what the TSA does to inspect it, I am a former TSA officer. I don't think I can really divulge info about it though, as I am still bound by their security policy. I've just never been on the customer side of flying with a pistol to know how that goes at ACY.

[mipafox 438]

Thea ammo has to be "enclosed." Loaded mags are fine if they have mag covers. If they can pick up what is holding the ammo, and can see the ammo, it's a no-go.

[leahcim 680]

Just got back from Arizona with 300 rounds of .45 -- two 100 rd boxes of Winchester and two 30 rd boxes of PPU.  No problem whatsoever with TSA or US Air.  I did not get "jammed up" at all.

Thanks to all on the forum for advice on this.  I will definitely look to purchase this way when I travel to free states in the future--prices close to online, but with better availability and no shipping charges.

 

I purchased at Walmart in Yuma and in San Luis for about $20 per 50 rd.  No big deal: No Dick's walk, no ID, no questions except "do you want a bag for that?"  Oh and the clerks at San Luis barely spoke English, but it is a border town.  Can you say "Yo quierro municion?"  I had to go to the Walmart several times because they were usually out of .45 and 9, I would stop by every morning and eventually would find a box or 2 at a time. 

 

I asked the hotel manager if I could keep it in their safe--I could imagine that raising eyebrows in NJ, not in AZ.  They were only perplexed as to why I did not just buy it in NJ.  ANd incredulous when I explained to them the price, availability and firearm transport laws.

 

I taped the boxes on the advice of another poster saying that they arrrived once with ammunition scattered throughout the suitcase because a box had opened up.  The total weight was about 13-14 lbs.  US Airways allows 11 lbs per passenger in checked luggage (of course);  TSA has no limit.  So I put the 200 rds of Winchester in my wife's bag (she was in 1st and could check up to 70 lbs per bag of non-ammunition); and the rest in my checked bag.  I informed the agent at the Phoenix check in that I had small caliber ammunition.  She asked if it was properly packed (easiest way is the original packaging ) and said that I did not need to declare it to them or to TSA.  I asked how they know it is less than the 11 lbs, she responded that they don't--that is the limit, but it is an honor system.

 

My wife was worried that TSA would sieze it, so about one 30 minutes after we cleared TSA checkpoint I told her we would have been called by now if that were the case.

Landed in Philadelphia and when I got home found a TSA inspection card in one bag only, but all the ammmunition was intact and is now in my safe.

[leahcim 680]

BTW, if anyone is ever in Yuma, I highly recommend renting ATVs and driving out to Imperial Sand Dunes in CA (about 20 miles west of Yuma).  My wife and I rented an RZR ($80/hour) and my colleague rented a quad ($40/hour) plus $60 for a truck to pull them.  Well worth the money, those dunes are incredible.

[Maksim 1,504]

If anyone has first hand experience at Atlantic City, please post how that went. I'm flying to FL and am taking a pistol(if the NICS check gets done in time) in my checked bag next week. I planned on locking the gun case with a cable to the inside of the bag.

I had stuff stolen out of my bag in Orlando about a year ago.

I know exactly what the TSA does to inspect it, I am a former TSA officer. I don't think I can really divulge info about it though, as I am still bound by their security policy. I've just never been on the customer side of flying with a pistol to know how that goes at ACY.

I flew out of ACY a few times. Spirit gate agents are pretty good. Just don't get there 30mins before flight.

 

No issues any of the times.