Record Number of Guns Taken Away at US Airports Last Year
2023-02-22
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1Last year, the agency responsible for airport security in the United States, the Transportation Security Administration, took away 6,542 guns from passengers.
2That was the most such incidents ever.
3In fact, the number of guns taken by TSA agents at U.S. airports has gone up every year since 2010, except for in 2020.
4That year the COVID-19 pandemic sharply reduced air travel.
5Some of those gun owners forgot they had a gun with them when they went through airport security.
6The TSA says travelers forget although there are lots of warnings in airports.
7Robert Spinden is the TSA's top official in Atlanta, Georgia.
8The city has one of the largest airports in the world.
9He said there are signs, televisions with messages and other warnings asking travelers to remove their guns from their bags.
10There is even a special hologram warning travelers against carrying guns.
11"There's quite a bit of information that is sort of flashing before your eyes to just try to remind you as a last ditch effort," Spinden said, that you need to secure your gun.
12Atlanta's airport security found 448 guns in 2022, the most of any U.S. airport, but fewer than the year before.
13Travelers can be required to pay a fine of almost $15,000 for bringing a gun to security checkpoints.
14One 2021 incident in Atlanta worried Spinden and other officials.
15A passenger was stopped after bringing a gun to security.
16When the agent opened the man's bag, he reached for the gun and it fired.
17As a result, many people ran away and the airport was closed for over two hours.
18Other airports that often find guns include those in the major Texas cities: Dallas, Houston, and Austin; three airports in Florida; Nashville, Tennessee and Denver, Colorado.
19One of TSA's top leaders is David Pekoske.
20He said the agency is finding more guns at its security checkpoints because there are more guns.
21"What we see in our checkpoints really reflects what we're seeing in society," he said.
22He said he is not sure "I forgot," is always the truth, but it is what people say most often when they are stopped.
23Whatever the case is, he said, people need to stop bringing guns into the airport.
24Whenever a gun is found, it stops the movement of passengers through security and causes delays, said Keith Jeffries, who used to work for TSA.
25"It's disruptive no matter what," Jeffries said.
26"It's a dangerous, prohibited item and, let's face it, you should know where your gun is."
27A group that follows gun sales in the U.S. is the National Shooting Sports Foundation.
28The group said there has been a huge increase background checks for guns since 2000.
29That year, there were about 7 million checks. Last year, there were over 16 million.
30With more guns around, the number taken by security workers will increase.
31But TSA says people must stop bringing guns to airports.
32Some say more signs are needed, others say the fines for gun owners who bring their guns to secure areas need to be increased.
33Aidan Johnston is with the group Gun Owners of America, which supports gun ownership.
34He said he thinks gun owners need better education about the rules for traveling with a gun, and he said the fines should be decreased.
35"These are not bad people that are in...need of punishment," he said.
36"These are people who made a mistake."
37He also said he does not believe bringing a gun to the airport is a horrible crime.
38The TSA, however, is still concerned that a gun might be carried onto an airplane and be used in a crime, such as a hijacking attempt.
39And even if the TSA is really good at catching guns, sometimes they get through.
40With so many guns, the chance of one getting onto a plane increases.
41That happened recently to Cliff Waddell, a musician.
42He was going from Nashville to a city in North Carolina and got stopped for having a gun.
43He said it was not possible since he had taken the same bag on a flight the day before and was not stopped.
44But he did have a gun during the earlier trip.
45Pekoske said he and the TSA are investigating the incident.
46Waddell said he was surprised to find the gun and it was only later that he remembered taking it out of a secured container in his car.
47He said he is worried about why TSA missed it.
48"That was a shock to me," he said.
49I'm Dan Friedell. And I'm Jill Robbins.
1Last year, the agency responsible for airport security in the United States, the Transportation Security Administration, took away 6,542 guns from passengers. 2That was the most such incidents ever. In fact, the number of guns taken by TSA agents at U.S. airports has gone up every year since 2010, except for in 2020. That year the COVID-19 pandemic sharply reduced air travel. 3Some of those gun owners forgot they had a gun with them when they went through airport security. The TSA says travelers forget although there are lots of warnings in airports. 4Robert Spinden is the TSA's top official in Atlanta, Georgia. The city has one of the largest airports in the world. He said there are signs, televisions with messages and other warnings asking travelers to remove their guns from their bags. There is even a special hologram warning travelers against carrying guns. 5"There's quite a bit of information that is sort of flashing before your eyes to just try to remind you as a last ditch effort," Spinden said, that you need to secure your gun. 6Atlanta's airport security found 448 guns in 2022, the most of any U.S. airport, but fewer than the year before. 7Travelers can be required to pay a fine of almost $15,000 for bringing a gun to security checkpoints. 8One 2021 incident in Atlanta worried Spinden and other officials. A passenger was stopped after bringing a gun to security. When the agent opened the man's bag, he reached for the gun and it fired. As a result, many people ran away and the airport was closed for over two hours. 9Other airports that often find guns include those in the major Texas cities: Dallas, Houston, and Austin; three airports in Florida; Nashville, Tennessee and Denver, Colorado. 10One of TSA's top leaders is David Pekoske. He said the agency is finding more guns at its security checkpoints because there are more guns. 11"What we see in our checkpoints really reflects what we're seeing in society," he said. 12He said he is not sure "I forgot," is always the truth, but it is what people say most often when they are stopped. Whatever the case is, he said, people need to stop bringing guns into the airport. 13Whenever a gun is found, it stops the movement of passengers through security and causes delays, said Keith Jeffries, who used to work for TSA. 14"It's disruptive no matter what," Jeffries said. "It's a dangerous, prohibited item and, let's face it, you should know where your gun is." 15A group that follows gun sales in the U.S. is the National Shooting Sports Foundation. The group said there has been a huge increase background checks for guns since 2000. That year, there were about 7 million checks. Last year, there were over 16 million. 16With more guns around, the number taken by security workers will increase. But TSA says people must stop bringing guns to airports. Some say more signs are needed, others say the fines for gun owners who bring their guns to secure areas need to be increased. 17Aidan Johnston is with the group Gun Owners of America, which supports gun ownership. He said he thinks gun owners need better education about the rules for traveling with a gun, and he said the fines should be decreased. 18"These are not bad people that are in...need of punishment," he said. "These are people who made a mistake." He also said he does not believe bringing a gun to the airport is a horrible crime. 19The TSA, however, is still concerned that a gun might be carried onto an airplane and be used in a crime, such as a hijacking attempt. 20And even if the TSA is really good at catching guns, sometimes they get through. With so many guns, the chance of one getting onto a plane increases. 21That happened recently to Cliff Waddell, a musician. He was going from Nashville to a city in North Carolina and got stopped for having a gun. He said it was not possible since he had taken the same bag on a flight the day before and was not stopped. 22But he did have a gun during the earlier trip. 23Pekoske said he and the TSA are investigating the incident. 24Waddell said he was surprised to find the gun and it was only later that he remembered taking it out of a secured container in his car. He said he is worried about why TSA missed it. 25"That was a shock to me," he said. 26I'm Dan Friedell. And I'm Jill Robbins. 27Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 28______________________________________________________________________ 29Words in This Story 30hologram -n. a picture produced by a laser that appears to have height, width and length. 31last ditch -idiom a final try at something 32bag -n. (informal) a container for carrying clothes or other things while traveling 33disruptive -adj. interfering with or stopping an activity or the expected development of something 34prohibited -adj. not permitted 35item -n. an object 36background check -n. an investigation into the past of a person to find out if they can have a position or the ability to do something 37We want to hear from you. What do you think about the number of guns in the U.S.? 38We have a new comment system. 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