TSA seizes three times more firearms at CLT in 2021 than year before, officials say

CHARLOTTE — Transportation Security Administration officers seized more than 100 firearms at the security checkpoint at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in 2021, three times the total in 2020.

[RELATED COVERAGE: TSA agents at CLT find more than 100 guns on travelers this year]

Another 106 guns were taken at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport in 2021, nearly double the number they seized at the airport in the previous year, a news release said.

In each instance, the firearms were discovered by TSA officers during the routine screening of carry-on property at airport security checkpoints, according to the news release.

Elsewhere, Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro reported 12 firearms seized, double the amount in 2020. At Asheville Regional Airport, 15 firearms were taken, compared to five in the previous year, the TSA said.

In all,. TSA officers seized 254 firearm at North Carolina airports in 2021. In 2020, officers seized 105, officials said.

Nationwide, 5,972 firearms were taken by TSA officers at U.S. airports, compared to 3,257 in the previous year. A firearm was detected for every 97,999 passengers screened, and in North Carolina, the rate was higher with one firearm discovered for every 61,275 passengers screened, the agency said.

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