When I returned from zim in May, Glenda met me in Dallas and we putzed around a few days before leaving for St. Thomas. Upon arrival on St. Thomas we were standing outside the airport, I was looking for my pipe tool, when I found a 45acp round in my vest pocket. I almost had a heart attack! not only did I violate federal law, it is a felony to posses unregistered ammunition here. I immediately located the nearest trash container and got rid of the round. I was very fortunate. So, check, check and recheck before you pass throught security.

That right there is one of my biggest fears. While it's not my pocket, per se, I keep my hard-side travel rifle cases seperate from range cases to prevent any stray ammo from getting loose in there. That's all any of us needs when signing off with security is to have a loose bullet show up at a checkpoint.

Been there done that! Mine happened way before 9/11 when you could still go to the gate to see a passenger off. Was on Christmas break in college and was taking my girlfriend to the airport for her to catch her flight home. Flight didnt leave until early afternoon, so I went deer hunting that morning. Left the woods, picked her up and we drove to Atlanta to the airport. When I walked thru the metal detector, it went off and I was told to empty my pockets. What do you know... the first thing I pull out is a 7mm RM cartridge. I dont know if they hit the panic button or what, but I was surrounded by 10 cops in no time. Lucky for me the Lt. was a hunter and I explained the situation and they let me go on after handing over the round.
I would hate to see what would happen now!

Well I've got two experiences with this type of crap...the first one happend on my first safari, one guy in our group flew all the way to germany, after a 12 hr layover, when we re-checked in, he had a 300 win round in his coat pocket in his carry-on. DFW must be brain dead...cause they didn't pick it up..

The german police didn't take it lightly, they hauled him off, and said he was going to jail, after an hour-hour and half they let him go. The rest of the time they were monitoring our where abouts...(how do I know?) Well my friend went up to the ticket counter, and asked, if his luggage had been loaded on the plane (something I always insist everyone does) she looked at him without any tickets or anthing, and called him by his last name saying everything in from your group is fine! (talk about a big-brother moment!)

SO being a compulsive safety-don't want and shit person, I said, "oh that will never happen to me"

2nd safari, flew back from windhoek, overnighted, and was flying to kruger the following day. Checked in, luggage was 3lbs over weight, was told it would be 100$, so I yanked out a backpack and stuffed it into my carryon... went through security.

Alarm goes off, lady says, I think you have a round in your bag, I'm thinking impossible...then I realized the backpack I had pulled out. Unzipped it, and there was a sleeve of .243 rounds, nosler ballistic tips...the lady said kindly, "I'll just take those" and I'm thinking praise the Lord. I thought everything was going to be fine till her supervisor ran over and all hell broke loose. She got on that radio, and escorted me to the police station in the terminal....thank god my hunting partner was there in tow. I was very scared, I started to sweat..heart racing.

Police guy started asking me why I had these, recounted the hunting story, finally found my RSA gun license in carry-on...it we got it smoothed out. But I was freaking out! Got to kruger, went through the backpack again, found a 300wsm...put it in random trash can and never looked back!

In 92' I flew to London to meet a friend that lived there. We drove to northern Scotland and hunted red stag and sika for a week. While hunting with his 270Weatherby rifle I found a lone 7mmRM cartridge in my raincoat pocket. I put it in my briefcase and forgot about it.

A week later my friend dropped my off at Gatwick to fly home. As I checked in they ran my briefcase thru the xray machine. I had a lot of small electronic stuff in there. Operator said she needed to open the case...no prob. I did notice several police looking guys coming my way, said to myself someones in trouble!!!!!

No lie. The operator was holding the lone ctg like it was a death venom scorpion as the police drug me off to the interrogation room, bare light bulb and all.

Three hours later I was finally released, missing my plane. I never liked a 7mmRM......

troy

Did it once, failed to find all the shotgun shells in my daypack/carryon before flying home.

Luckily it was in Houston, and they were pretty cool about it....

In December of 2001, three months after 9/11, I had a cow elk permit on The Flying D ranch (Ted Turner's), after shooting my elk, I unloaded my rifle and put three 270's in my pack. Ten days later, I left for a month in Southern Chile taking my small day pack. When through security in Bozeman and Atlanta and then customs in Santiago, no problems

Three weeks into the trip I empted my day pack and found the three 270's. I quickly discarded them in my hotel room trash can. No, the maids will find then and there could be trouble. What now? I put the 3 cartridges in my pocket and when downtown and purchased a small Coke in a paper cup. I drank the Coke and put the cartridges in the cup and threw all of it away in the nearest trash can. I was lucky. That incident does not bode well for TSA.

Had a similar situation in Zim in 07. My son and I had hunted in the south east by Ghona rezhou and they had him out on the last day trying to find an elephant. When they came in it was decided that time was short because the drive to Harare was 5 or 6 hours so everything was thrown in luggage very quickly. When I was going through security I had one of those elastic dvices that your secure to your belt and put ammo in, with ammo in it in my carry on.
Of course the xray showed it and they pulled it out. I said lets just throw it in the trash but the guy who was running the show insisted that we go down below, find my lugage and put it in .
That's what we did and of course he received what I thought was a much deserved tip.

I'd rather have this sort of thing happen in deepest darkest Africa than those Mexican military checkpoints just to the south of me.. Those bastards don't take too kindly to that sort of thing.

You DO NOT, let me repeat, you DO NOT want to get arrested in SA for ANYTHING! And you can be arrested depending on the AO's mood for just about anything! Stay with your guide, your friends and stay informed. I never had a problem but smelled trouble a few times and felt that if I were alone, there would have been problems. For the most part my trips have been trouble free and the police were friendly. It just seems to be in the checking in and out dept. were things get hairy.

Had a friend go thru security check in Albany, GA with a shotgun shell still left in his hunting vest, which was in his carry-on bag. THe woman doing the looking in the bag asked him if he wanted to go back out of security and mail it to himself. His response was, "Naw, I can live without it."

quote:

Originally posted by graybird:
Had a friend go thru security check in Albany, GA with a shotgun shell still left in his hunting vest, which was in his carry-on bag. THe woman doing the looking in the bag asked him if he wanted to go back out of security and mail it to himself. His response was, "Naw, I can live without it."

How many here can remember when you could carry your rifle on board an airplane? They made you show them your gun, pull the bolt out or leave the action open. Back in the day each airline had different rules. When I was much younger, this was the norm..

In 1971, I had my first "real" big game hunt in Alaska. I remember carrying my rifle, in a soft gun case, through O'Hare International and into the boarding area. As I was sitting there waiting to board, the NWA pilot walked by, noticed my rifle case, and asked where I was hunting.

After a little talk, he said "Give me your rifle and I'll put it up in the cockpit with me so it won't get knocked around in the passenger closet"!

Times have changed.

In 2000 a contractor saw a single round of 7mm Mauser inside my jacket. It has slid through a hole in my pocket and was lodged in the insulation. He chewed my ass and let me go.

Coming back from Phoenix in 2007 I had a round of .45 ball in the back pocket of the jeans in my carryon. Police report, whole nine yards. TSA sent me a letter saying if it happened again I was going to prison.

We live in a paranoid, delusional world. Never forget that some of the most paranoid and delusional work for various governments. They are very likely hired because of that. Act accordingly.

In 2006 the GF and I were headed to mexico. Just as we head out the door the tells me grab your light weight back pack for when we go shopping and stuff.

So I quickly grab my GoLite pack I use for overnights and ultralight backpacking, remove the S&W 329PD and speedloader I carry in the top of the pack in the back country and head out to Denver International.

Fast forward to the SA line and the lady asks the GF "is this yours"?

I quickly announced it was mine as I suddenly realised that the speed 6 round ammo wallet was still in there. TSA lasy makes an ass of herself witht he cop and keeps calling him Leo like it is his name when as we all know is an acronly LOE for Law Enforcement Officer. He is really getting of the TSA bumpkin when I look at his belt and see that he is one of the very very few Denver cops that still carries a SW 625 wheelgun.

Guy takes the ammo. Give me the wallet back and says "Man those things are expensive". God bles shim.

Now there was a report filled out cause he and the TSA person that had to do the report were professional and polite and had a job to do. 6 months later I get a TSA nastygram threatenign me with all kinds of dire consequences should I ever transgress again.

Now I give myself and my luggage a complete frisk and search before we leave and again before I hit the TSA checkpoint.

Unloading my bag at home in February following an AZ javelina hunt, I was horrified to find a 2.75" 12 ga. shell in my *carry on*. I was practically shaking when thinking about what would have happened had they found it. The irony is that the TSA stopped me in MN on the stop back to Boston and seized a mini Case nailclipper type folder in my toiletries bag.

I will NEVER make that mistake again.

*Shudders*

When returning from Zambia several years ago, while clearing customs in Atlanta, I fould a shell in my shotgun that had I foolishly had not removed. I quickly handed it to the agent and asked him to get rid of it. He said it was too expensive to pitch and just had me stick it in my check bag. That incident really taught me a lesson.