Flying with a handgun?

[BigHaggis13 3]

Hey guys, I've been doing a little homework on this subject but I wanted to post up and ask anyone with experience on the matter.  

So in about two weeks, the girlfriend and I are flying down to Florida for a week.  We're staying with her father, who was gracious enough to give us run of the house while we're down there.  He's a gun nut, and wants to go shooting with me while we're down, which I'd be happy to do so.  I've been thinking about bringing my 1911 since we're already doing checked luggage, I have a hard case, and a few TSA locks.  We're flying out of Atlantic City, and into Orlando, and vice versa on the return.  Airline is Spirit (I know, I know...)

I was planning on a trigger lock for the gun, locking the case, locking the luggage, and I have some gps/Bluetooth tags for the luggage and gun case.  I was also going to make copies of my ownership paperwork for the gun and put them in the hard case with it, just so there's no questions.  I just wanted to ask anyone on here if they've ever had any issues, or if there's anything else I should be doing.  I'm just going to buy ammo while I'm down there, I figure it's one less thing I have to worry about.  But I've read all sorts of horror stories, so I was a bit curious what kind of experience other folks have had.

[Pew Pew Plates 358]

Follow the airlines guidelines and you shouldn't have an issue.  I believe your plan of using a TSA lock does not pass muster as I've heard (may not be true!) NO TSA LOCKS at all.  Most who follows the guidelines say it's not bad at all.

[BigHaggis13 3]

Okay, thank you for the heads up.  I read through the guides but I definitely missed that, I will pick up some new locks.

[High Exposure 5,664]

No TSA locks on the gun case.

Only you should have access to the firearm. TSA will come get you if they need to open and inspect.

Go to the ticket counter and say:

"I need to declare an unloaded firearm in my checked bag" do not say "I have a gun".

The gate agent will walk you through the rest of the process.

[Krdshrk 3,877]

Yeah - you have to go to the ticket counter... for United it's the special services counter IIRC.

I've done it before - will do it again through Newark next month when I go down to FL

 

[medic2264 11]

Every carrier does it a little different.  Go to the carrier's (that u are flying on) website and read through their guidelines / policy for checking in an unloaded firearm and how they want ammunition packed (factory original box vs hard plastic box).  It is also a good idea to print out their policy and have it with you when you are checking in your unloaded firearm.

 

This is the case i used to travel with

the locks i used.

 

When you land your baggage might be on the turnstile with everyone else's, or a customer service representative might come out with your bag and request photo ID before turning the baggage over to you.  Every airport and carrier does things slightly different.

[Krdshrk 3,877]

12 minutes ago, medic2264 said:

Every carrier does it a little different.  Go to the carrier's (that u are flying on) website and read through their guidelines / policy for checking in an unloaded firearm and how they want ammunition packed (factory original box vs hard plastic box).  

I've never been questioned on the type of box - Factory original box should be more than sufficient in any case - never heard of a hard plastic box requirement - as long as the ammo's not loose.

[medic2264 11]

18 minutes ago, Krdshrk said:

I've never been questioned on the type of box - Factory original box should be more than sufficient in any case - never heard of a hard plastic box requirement - as long as the ammo's not loose.

Sorry was just trying to give an example.  After checking about 5 airlines in regards to their ammunition policy most all use the same statement.  

1. All ammunition must be securely packed in either the original manufacturer’s packaging, a fiber (such as cardboard), wood, or metal box, or other specially designed packaging.

However, some will allow ammunition to be in the magazine, while others will not.

[BigHaggis13 3]

I have a Cabela's hard case I picked up a few weeks ago just for this purpose, since the plastic case it came with is very cheap and flimsy.  And I just grabbed two combination master locks for the gun case.  I'll just use the other lock on our luggage.  Neither of us are going down with keys so I figured combo padlocks will be easier, with no keys to keep track of.  I'm probably just being paranoid because I've never flown with a firearm before, but I definitely want to keep this as simple as possible.  Spirit looks like they just cut and paste their guidelines from the TSA's, but I will print out a copy to bring along with my other paperwork, that seems like a good idea.

Thank you everyone for the input so far!  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous about it, but it's nice to see nobody has had any bad experiences.

[Krdshrk 3,877]

I use a Gunvault NanoVault 300 for when I travel:

https://www.amazon.com/GunVault-NV300-NanoVault-Combination-Lock/dp/B003841ZBS

There's a cable lock that I use to secure the lockbox to the luggage as well, so it's harder to steal.

[High Exposure 5,664]

Print out multiple copies and put one in the case with the gun. 

Pro-tip: TSA has to ensure your pistol is unloaded before they forward your luggage to the airline. To do so they may have to open your case to verify.

To make life easier, I now pull the slide from the frame before I case the pistol. I then put an unopened box of ammo and mags separate. That way when they X-ray the case they see the pistol is disassembled and definitely unloaded. 

The first time I flew I did not disassemble and TSA had to go through my luggage, pull my case, open it, check that it was clear safe and empty, then I had to try and repack everything back in my luggage in the walkway by the escalator while the TSA and an Airline representative watched.

After that experience I started packing the pistol in the case dis-assembled (slide off the frame). I have flown 5 or 6 times since then with zero issues. They can run my unopened suitcase through the X-ray machine and hand it to the baggage carrier without opening the gun case or my luggage. Works much better.

Pics of my case setup:

Pelican 1400

There are 2 more mags under the mag you can see. The key to the locks goes in my wallet by itself.

[BNorX 0]

I flew Spirit from AC to Fort Myers last month.  I was nervous going into it, as it was my first time, but I had no issues at all.  I used a Pelican Storm im2050 case.  Make sure you don't use TSA locks on the firearm case.  I used a set of Keyed Master Locks (model 131T).  Had a second set of locks in my luggage just in case.  I printed out a copy of my pistol purchase permit an kept it in the pelican case.  I did lock my luggage with a TSA lock, but the ticket lady made it seem like it isn't necessary.  I also printed out the TSA and Spirit instructions for flying with a firearm, and kept them in my luggage.  I did not fly with ammo since my parents own a house in Florida, so I just bought my ammo while I was down there.

You just walk up to the ticket counter and say "you need to declare and unloaded firearm."  The person working the counter didn't flinch, they just filled out an orange tag, you put your signature on it two or three times.  Then they ask you to put the tag on the firearm case.  They hand you a firearms declaration receipt and keep one for themselves.  The lady did ask me the if firearm was unloaded, but they never asked to see the case.  I also have a sticker on my firearm case with my name and number just in case they need to contact me.  Made it out of AC without any problems.  The process is much easier than you make it out to be in your mind.  

Flying from Ft Myers to AC, the process was exactly the same, but the guy at the ticket counter didn't seem as comfortable with declaring a firearm.  Seemed a bit nervous when I said I had to declare an unloaded firearm.  Don't know if it was because he was new, or because he was a foreigner.  But, no issues on the way home either.

[BNorX 0]

Here's how my case is set up.  I had the slide closed, but no magazine inserted.

[PK90 3,570]

16 hours ago, BNorX said:

Here's how my case is set up.  I had the slide closed, but no magazine inserted.

Was there any room left for clothes in your luggage?

[BNorX 0]

7 hours ago, PK90 said:

Was there any room left for clothes in your luggage?

I had plenty of room.  The pistol case does take up about a quarter of my luggage space.  Just have to watch the total weight.

[Alex V 99]

I flew with a pistol out of Newark via United and out of Trenton via Frontier.  I was never asked to show the firearm was unloaded.  Both United and Frontier just gave me a tag to put in the case and never asked any more questions.  Hm.  Regardless, the idea of separating the slide and frame is a good one.

I will be flying to Florida on Spirit airlines in October, but from Newark.  Let us know how your experience with them is.

[Old Glock guy 1,127]

I've flown out of Newark with a handgun a number of times now, and never had a problem; however I've been strongly advised against flying out of the NY airports with a firearm.  

My biggest challenge was a couple of years ago when I was traveling with both a handgun and my wife for the first time together.  She was a bit miffed that I felt the need to be armed on vacation. I explained that I was just looking out for her safety and well-being.  The ticket agent led us over to the TSA area and instructed us to wait outside while they were checking to be sure the gun was unloaded and properly stowed.  Luckily for me, there was another couple standing there with us.  I asked the guy if he was in law enforcement.  He told me that was not, but that he just liked taking a gun with him when he traveled.  Made me look a lot more normal to my wife, and she has been fine with it ever since.