AA Firearm Policy - anyone ever had this issue?

[TheCougar]

I wrote a complaint to the airline. Won’t do anything, but it sure made me feel better.

 

[Yukon Cornelius]

I’ve never had an airline employee check my bags. That isn’t their job. It’s TSA’s job.

 

[Sevens]

You just got a shitty agent that day. Fly enough and it will happen to everyone. Probably would have pushed back and said “I want to talk to YOUR supervisor” but that’s easy for me to say because I wasn’t the one being harassed that day.

I’ve had some interesting experiences flying, my favorite was when I was 16, flying alone with a rifle, and the TSA guy asked me how to check the rifle was unloaded. Had some really great and helpful agents though too, so not every agent is an a-hole.

 

[Fatcamp]

You gotta get Karen with some people. As soon as a problem shows up start filming and demand to speak to their supervisor. People hate being filmed acting like jerks because after the fact they cannot lie about their behavior.

Sucks but effective.

 

[TheCougar]

The rifle ended up being right on when I checked zero. The Bushnell and Tally rings held great over the entire trip while my buddy had issues with his Vortex. I travel back tomorrow morning, so hopefully I won’t have a repeat of the same issue.

 

[Michael54]

I have a cousin in california that now has two of the exact same rifle. One at his house and one in my safe. He had issues quite a few times before deciding it was a lot less hassle just to buy another gun and leave it.

 

[UpWndFrt]

I've had good luck on SW, United and Delta. My strangest experiences were both at Las Vegas. They they ask that you just hang out for a while and see if someone comes down to bug you, so I typically just leave.

Once I was asked to take a pistol out of the case at the checkout counter to show her it was unloaded...

The following year after checking my bags, wondering in the back of my mind if I should have waited longer, and trying to get through security, I see my carryon getting a lot of scrutiny. Two things came to mind: the big shooting was 8 hours ago, and I swapped a ton of stuff between suit cases (one to be checked vs the carry on) last second before leaving...

No, I didnt put the gun in the wrong bag, but still had an "oh crap!" moment.

The attached photo is a gentleman who is handing me my "dummy" ammunition (his words, not mine) right after the security checkpoint. I said "hold still for a second," took the photo, and asked him to throw those in the trash.

 

[cuerro viejo]

You would be surprised how far that letter will go up that chain, especially right now. They are fighting for your business.

 

[TheCougar]

So the best part is that I had no issues checking my rifle in Denver. The lady didn’t even look. Then she forgot to tag the bag as a firearm when I went to TSA, so my rifle case ended up on the baggage carousel and I grabbed it and walked out the door without having to show ID or interact with anyone. Unreal.

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

So the best part is that I had no issues checking my rifle in Denver. The lady didn’t even look. Then she forgot to tag the bag as a firearm when I went to TSA, so my rifle case ended up on the baggage carousel and I grabbed it and walked out the door without having to show ID or interact with anyone. Unreal.

I’ve had it happen twice, believe once was Delta and once was American. I’ve even cautioned against it on a couple of threads on here. Fly with a rifle 10+ times a year and you experience some crazy stuff. Worst part is like you experienced, there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. It’s either figure out how to comply to their made up rules or miss your flight.