Flying with Rifle.

[Clarktar]

Figured I would check in with everyone here before I start calling and Googling. Likely flying Alaska Airlines this fall with a rifle and wanted to see what others have used to check their rifle. What is the proper procedure? I doubt we can have loaded ammo in the case.....

Thanks!

 

[IanF.]

First off remember the people you are dealing with probably aren't hunter or gun people, and are crazy paranoid by the requitement of their job. So be early, be polite and be patient.

Unloaded, some airlines require bolts removed. I put a trigger lock on. Ammo in separate luggage and in a plastic box or original box. You must declare you have a firearm and fill out some paperwork. Sometimes you have to take it to special services (big items, skis, bikes etc). Sometimes you get a secondary inspection. Expect this and plan for it.

Read your airlines policies and call them if you're worried.

I duct tape my latches after inspection and put my locks on, before it goes on the belt.

Also, check your sizes and weights, could be considered oversized so more $$. I load my double rifle case with all my optics and clothes to 48lbs.

Just be prepared and expect slow and clueless and you'll be fine.

Have a great trip!

Ian

I'm always happy to be through security checked in drinking coffee then panicking about getting on a plane.

 

[boom]

Get to the airport super early. Have a good gun case.

 

[Kotaman]

The biggest thing I get hassled over is the locks. FAA says NO TSA LOCKS! The gate agents I've dealt with usually ask about my non-TSA locks and tell me they SHOULD be TSA locks. I explain to them the LAW and they usually back off but just recently I got the run around from a young gate agent and her supervisor. I now carry both types of locks with me.

I was checking in for my return flight home from a hunt in New Mexico a couple years ago. The line was full of hunters. The gate agents CORRECTLY refused any firearms with TSA locks. Sent many hunters scrambling through the airport looking for regular locks and many missed their flights. My advice: Put non TSA locks on your case and carry TSA locks with you just in case. Know that you are actually breaking the law if you use TSA locks on your gun case.

 

[VernAK]

Study up on all the laws and rules and remember that the procedure changes with the TSA shift change. As with most bureaucratic positions of authority, TSA [and others] just say "NO" rather than seeking out factual information.

 

[kuhn4]

The following is worth reading:
http://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition

 

[kuhn4]

I print and carry that policy with me.

 

[Cross]

So what brand of locks do you guys favor?

 

[kuhn4]

I am using Master Locks, but I would say any medium to heavy duty lock will be fine. I used lightweight locks in the past to reduce the bag weight and had them get knocked off in transport.

 

[Ray]

http://www.alaskaair.com/content/travel-info/baggage/baggage-firearms.aspx

Read what AK Air says their policy is. There is a line in that TSA link up there that could confuse people if they miss a word. If you have a magazine with rounds in it, the magazine has to be boxed. A loose loaded mag in the case will get you in trouble.

http://www.wikihow.com/Travel-on-Airplanes-With-a-Gun

Good generic steps.

declare it when you check the bag. they will have you sign a little tag and place that inside the case and then lock it. Then they will ask you to take it to a TSA inspection spot. Some airports do not have xray machines and they may ask you to open the case in front of TSA. Other places will not, but they will scrub it for residue and then send it down the belt. It will more than likely show up in the over sized baggage area, but some places require all possible firearm luggage to be sent to the luggage claim area so that someone double checks the claim tags to make sure its you picking up the bag.

Most my cases have locking latches, but some need pad locks. i use large combination locks that fit the case. Some case handles and other bumps interfere with closing a lock so make sure they fit well before you show up at the airport.

I usually have a box of ammo in the rifle case. Shotgun ammo goes in the luggage. For travel I have switched over to plastic shell boxes as the factory fiber boxes have deteriorated on a few wet trips and there was nothing left to safely hold the ammo for the trip home.

 

[colonel00]

Where are you going?

Advice above is great. Just packed our rifles for the trip up to AK next week. One thing to mention, make sure the case is completely "secured" by the locks. As an example, on year we had our double rifle pelican case and managed to lose one of the two locks. As we were checking in for the return trip, the single lock only secured one side of the case. The TSA officer said we needed a second lock and it was a hassle trying to get one that would fit from an airport gift shop and it was expensive as well.

Kotaman makes a good point about the locks but I always say to not use TSA locks for your guns. Once inspected, nobody should have the need to access the firearms case.

Also, ammo doesn't have to be in a separate luggage item but it does have to be "contained" and not loose. We always just fly it in the retail boxes.

I think you have my number, give me a call and let me know what you have planned and I can help you along. PM me if you don't have my number.

 

[Vids]

Good advice here, especially the part about getting there early. Expect to spend extra time with the firearm inspection.

What's interesting to me is that I was required to have a TSA lock when flying out of Denver a few years ago, they said I couldn't use my regular lock. Had to buy one in the gift shop. I guess it depends on which TSA agent you speak with....

In general I have had zero trouble flying with guns, lots of people do it every year so most agents you deal with have seen lots of them.

 

[colonel00]

Regarding the locks, perhaps print this and take it with you. Under 1540.111 it states:

(iv) The container in which it is carried
is locked, and only the passenger
retains the key or combination.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2011-title49-vol9/pdf/CFR-2011-title49-vol9-sec1540-111.pdf

 

[gmajor]

Good advice here, especially the part about getting there early. Expect to spend extra time with the firearm inspection.

What's interesting to me is that I was required to have a TSA lock when flying out of Denver a few years ago, they said I couldn't use my regular lock. Had to buy one in the gift shop. I guess it depends on which TSA agent you speak with....

In general I have had zero trouble flying with guns, lots of people do it every year so most agents you deal with have seen lots of them.

I was told at Denver that since 2009, you are "allowed" to use TSA locks on firearms. The ambiguity of it all (the airport employees' responses) is a bit stressful, but I've never had a problem.

 

[colonel00]

I don't think there is anything saying that you can't use TSA locks but it isn't recommended. The whole purpose is to keep the firearms secure and a random TSA screener should not have easy access to the case as it has already been inspected. If they need to access it, they are supposed to contact you or as a last resort they can cut the locks off.

 

[Kotaman]

All interpretations I've ever heard regarding the law say you ARE breaking the law if you use TSA Locks.

 

[colonel00]

Yeah, thinking about it more, I have to agree. As it states "only the passenger retains the key or combination". Therefore, if it was a TSA lock, there is a potential for many others to have a key that could open the locks.

Here is another snippet that discusses it:

Use a NON-TSA approved lock. While many will tell you to use a TSA approved lock, this is actually prohibited by 49CFR 1540.111, the regulation that governs firearm transportation. It should be noted that the TSA usually allows the use of TSA locks but in reality they are not legal as they are designed to be opened by a TSA master key, which is expressly prohibited by the above regulation. The TSA will ask you to unlock the case or provide them a key (do not give them the combination if a combination lock is used), then they will visually inspect the packing of your gun, after which they will either have you re-lock your case or they will re-lock it and return your key. TSA agents are not trained or allowed to handle firearm, so no contact should me made in that manner. If an agent feels the firearm requires in-depth inspection, they must have a law enforcement officer come over to perform that function. If re-inspection is deemed necessary after the bag is checked, they will locate the owner and have them open the case again, so it is wise to remain in the area or on the aircraft after checking the firearm. Buy the best non-TSA locks you can find.

 

[Clarktar]

Phew, thanks guys. What a resource!
I'm not flying, but my wife will likely fly into MT for our deer hunt, and she will be bringing firearms.

 

[Cross]

Awesome info thanks guys.

I am flying into Colorado for my first antelope hunt.

 

[gmajor]

Sorry to bump an old-ish thread, but can anyone share some links to non-TSA locks that they favor? I just took the plunge and ordered a Pelican 1750, and I'd like some non-TSA locks for it - preferably smaller cable-based combo locks similar to these. I'll take the precaution of bringing both types of locks to appease the airport employees' finicky moods, as well as printing the documentation attached above. Thanks!