Record number of guns confiscated at South Carolina airports in 2021

Chase Karacostas
·2 min read

The Transportation Security Administration confiscated 72 guns during security screenings at South Carolina airports in 2021, a record for the state, the agency announced this week.

Four airports — Charleston, Columbia, Myrtle Beach and Florence — all saw the highest number of firearm confiscations in at least four years, TSA said.

Each airport’s previous high was set in 2019. Here’s how many guns were taken by TSA at four of South Carolina’s airports in 2021 and 2019.

  • Charleston: 2021 — 30, 2019 — 18.

  • Columbia: 2021 — 11, 2019 — 10.

  • Florence: 2021 — 1, 2019 — 0.

  • Myrtle Beach: 2021 — 13, 2019 — 12

  • Statewide total: 2021 — 72, 2019 — 63

Hilton Head Island Airport has had zero confiscations for the last four years. Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport was the only airport in the state to have fewer guns confiscated in 2021 (17 guns) than 2019 (23 guns).

Statewide, these confiscations represented a rate of one firearm detected per 77,135 travelers screened by TSA, which was about 20% higher than the rate for the nation as a whole. South Carolina’s airports screened 5.56 million people statewide in 2021.

Travelers can receive both criminal and civil penalties for bringing a firearm through TSA. The maximum civil penalty is $13,900 per violation.

The TSA noted in its announcement that even people with a concealed weapons permit are still not allowed to bring a firearm in their carry-on luggage. People who violate the rules can also temporarily lose Trusted Traveler status and TSA PreCheck benefits.

Firearms are only allowed to be transported on a commercial aircraft if they are unloaded, packed in a locked, hard-sided case and placed in checked luggage, TSA said. The same goes for replica firearms. Airlines must also be notified if a bag contains a firearm, ammunition or firearm parts when it is checked in at the ticket counter, TSA said.