TSA intercepted 122 firearms at Chicago airports in 2023, including record number at Midway

The Transportation Security Administration intercepted 122 firearms at both Chicago airports last year, and a new record was set at Midway International Airport.

Officers stopped 72 handguns from making it through security checkpoints at O’Hare International Airport, a decrease from the previous year, according to the TSA.

However, a new annual record was set at Midway, where 50 firearms were seized — breaking the previous record of 42 handguns set in 2021.

“Responsible gun owners know where their guns are and they know not to bring them to a checkpoint,” said Brian Moses, acting Illinois TSA federal security director. “We urge passengers to start with an empty bag so you know with certainty that there is nothing prohibited inside. Bringing a firearm to the checkpoint is a careless, dangerous mistake that passengers can easily avoid.”

Passengers who bring a firearm to a TSA checkpoint can face fines up to $15,000, and their TSA PreCheck could be revoked for up to five years.

In 2023, 6,737 firearms were intercepted at airports across the U.S. — the highest one-year total in TSA history, officials said. More than 90% of the guns were loaded.

Sheldon Howard Jacobson, a professor at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana and an aviation security expert, told the Sun-Times the rising numbers can likely be attributed to an increase in travel after the pandemic and advancements in technology.

Jacobson said places with more lenient gun laws and large international airports such as Atlanta Hartsfield, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston Bush Intercontinental and Phoenix Sky Harbor will account for the most firearms found.

In most cases, the weapons found are legally registered to the owner who “just forgot that it’s in their bag,” Jacobson said.

Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms in checked baggage if they are unloaded, packed separately from ammunition in a locked hard-back case and declared at the airline check-in counter. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should check for firearm laws in the jurisdictions they are flying to and from.