?? Flying with a Rifle ??

[chuckbuster]

My nephew will be flying the end of the month on Delta from Arkansas to Indiana. Bringing a rifle back with him. It will be in a Cabelas Heavy Duty Aluminum case, locking bolts/rods etc.

Should he remove & carry bolt for rifle separately? thought here is if it was stolen it would be essentially useless to thief.

If carrying separate will airline allow in carry on? It is nothing but a hunk of steel without the rest of it but explain that to some TSA wannabe?

Thanx for your thoughts.
Kevin

[timkelley]

Have him call the specific airline he will ride for their rules. All airlines are not the same.

[MtGun44]

Max 11 kg (22 lbs) of ammo, must be in factory boxes or plastic boxes specifically made for
ammo. Gun will be inspected at TSA security point, then locked and put into luggage. Stay
and watch it go to make sure there is no problem. They want to see that it is unloaded, he
will have to sign a little card saying it is unloaded. Some of the badly trained ones want
to put that on the outside, don't let them, although it is less of a deal with an
obvious gun case. I suppose he can keep the bolt in separate luggage, but I'd worry
that the bolt would get lost.

The gun will likely arrive at oversized luggage at the destination, if it is a big airport.

Relatively nothing to it, don't be nervous as long as he stays out of NJ or NY where the local
goons often ignore the law and grab legal guns in luggage. He is legal, so don't let them
buffalo you. If he doesn't like something, he should politely but firmly insist on getting a supervisor.
Some of these bozos freak out at the sight of a gun and don't know what to do. Don't try to
touch the gun when they are checking it, they freak. INSIST on THEM putting it properly into the
case, with it centered well, away from the edges, bolt away from the gun so they don't bang
together. They usually don't know or care how it is in the case.

Traveled many times with handguns and rifles, national many, international once and no issues,
but have been warned away from NJ or NY airports when traveling with guns.

Wothwhile going on the web site for the particular airlines and read what they say about guns,
but they will be very close to what I have laid out above.

Bill

[stubshaft]

Back in the day I used to carry the bolt for my rifles. I have had airline baggage agents drill out the locks on my gun cases (a whole nother story). The problem nowadays is that the TSA Gestapo might confiscate the bolt.

[Blacksmith]

Ship the bolt seperately via USPS, UPS, FedEx or whoever you trust.

Blacksmith

[chuckbuster]

Thanx Guys,
No ammo traveling and we have talked to airline on it.

[DLCTEX]

Ammo not an issue in this case, but ammo must be in separate luggage.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

anyways ...

[1Shirt]

MTGun44 has it right. Have flown numeroous times with rifle(s) and ammo both in the states and overseas. Follow his directions and you won't have many problems.
1Shirt!:coffeecom

[Larry Gibson]

Should he remove & carry bolt for rifle separately?

NO!!!!!

Firearms parts must be declared and go through in checked baggage....absolutely do not carry it in carry on. I've haled a lot of different firearms around the country the last 3 years on numerous airlines. The airlines are easy to deal with....it's TSA that is a PITA. That's mostly because many don't have a clue. Just last month I was going through TSA security and declared I had ammuntion. It was unloaded display ammo for the SASS convention. I declared it because I have had such removed from my checked baggage by TSA before. The inspecting TSA agent didn't think it needed to be declared and inspected as it wasn't loaded ammunition. She called a supervisor.

He had a thick accent and was hard to understand. He didn't understand english very well either. When I said the word "dummy" in reference to the ammo he threatened to call airport police and have me arrested for insulting them. Fortuneately the female TSA agent knew what I was talking about and calmed him down. He still had her swab the bag, inspect each round and search everything in the bag. best to leave the bolt in the case with the rifle.

Larry Gibson

[Mk42gunner]

Drive?

That's what I'd do ... Only a days drive, gonna waste a day flying anyways ...

That's what I do, but I never really liked flying anyway.

Robert

[smoked turkey]

I agree with driving. Too much risk of something going wrong in the shipping process. It is true that each airport has its own way of handling firearms. If you do fly with it make sure it is in a secure lockable case that only you have the key for. They should ask you to unlock it and lock it back. I would try not to give anyone the key. I would leave the bolt in the rifle. That way you don't risk damage to your firearm from them banging together.

[Artful]

He had a thick accent and was hard to understand. He didn't understand english very well either. When I said the word "dummy" in reference to the ammo he threatened to call airport police and have me arrested for insulting them. Fortuneately the female TSA agent knew what I was talking about and calmed him down. He still had her swab the bag, inspect each round and search everything in the bag.

Larry Gibson

Sounds like it was the right word to me. Both for the ammo and supervisor. [smilie=1:

[Beau Cassidy]

Your Cabelas case will be fine. Yhat is what i use and it has many sxars after 2 trips. You cannot take any part of a gun with you other than with the checked baggage. Theft isnt going to be your problem- it is hard to hode one of thos cases- damage will be. Everybody will notice you witg that rifle case. It needs to be unlocked when you check in. The agent will take it to TSA so they can pilfer- I mean check it. After that you will be able to lock it. At least that is what has been offered to me.

[cdet69]

Yes New York sucks when it comes to traveling with a firearm. Even if you live here. You may be correct 100% but they will still give you a hard time. Unlike the majority of the other states will still have the assault weapons ban and it comes with some real strange regulations. Quite a bit that still make very little sense.

[Chill Wills]

MtGun44 did a very good job outlining the steps. My experience flying international and interstate are close to his.

Infact you have received a lot of good advise.

Be polite, be alert, and be smart. There are different procedures at different airports so it may be different everywhere you go. However, it is all about the same. I have had good TSA experiences and some less so.

Short story:
The worst experience came from a #*&^$^%@ little trained US Customs agent upon my return to the USA who …clearly not knowing anything about the fire arm, pulled it out of the case, drew back the hammer, looked bewildered and with too much pride ask for help, swept the whole area as he turned with it, and he put it away in the case cocked and mumbled something to me over his shoulder. “did you say I could go?” I said. That one I followed up. I was surprised how seriously US Customs took my report.

I hope he has the best of luck on his trip and he will be more worldly for it.

[wills]

I'd prefer to use an airplane.

[Mooseman]

Also, For your Baggage, you need the New TSA locks which can be found at Hardware stores . You set the combination but TSA has master keys to open the locks on your Baggage . I fly with 2 Handguns in a Locked Hardcase. Ammo must be in Original Boxes and Magazines must be unloaded for them but they can be in the same case. I place them inside my checked Baggage and then Lock it outside with a TSA lock. You must declare it to the agent at the ticket counter and get a Firearm tag that is placed inside the gun case, then locked up. Some airports have an agent wheel your bags with you to the TSA Xray checkpoint. He will give you a thumbs up if all is OK or they will call you over to the security area for visual exam. I have had both happen. I carry the keys for the gun case readily available in case of the exam.
Rifles in Rifle cases may be locked without TSA locks and you can request secured pickup at Baggage Claim at your destination where you must show your Ticket stub.
It is Perfectly legal to ship guns to a destination address to yourself C/O a family member or friend , but they must not open the package. USPS via certified insured mail is OK for long guns, but NOT for pistols.Also,You could carry the bolt separately in Checked Baggage ONLY and you do not have to declare it.

[MtGun44]

Ammo does not need to be in original boxes only. It can be in any box specifically designed
to hold ammo, like Berry or MTM plastic boxes, also.

[AkMike]

1 other little tid bit... DO NOT use a TSA lock on your gun case! Baggage only. If they want to look they are required to have you there to lock and unlock the gun case.

[chuckbuster]

Thanx all

[ilcop22]

Drive?

That's what I'd do ... Only a days drive, gonna waste a day flying anyways ...

Good to see someone else follows the same logic as I do. I prefer not to give up my Constitutional rights for a shorter trip...

[DaveCampbell]

I have flown thousands of miles--both in country and internationally--with firearms and ammunition. The situation has gotten pregressively worse since 9/11. The reason is that TSA morons are problematical. On a rare occasion you may get the 1 in 10,000 who actually has some semblence of firearm's knowledge. Most of the time you get an imbecile who's more interested in demonstrating his or her power and authority.

I no longer fly anywhere for other, somewhat related, reasons, but toward the end of my flying "career" I began shipping firearms and ammo to myself. It's perfectly legal since no transfer takes place. Simply address the package or gun case to yourself, in care of... I used FedEx overnight so that the firearm is in a trusted adult's care as much as possible. NOTE: YOU CANNOT SHIP AMMUNITION OF ANY KIND BY AIR SHIPMENT. Like most regs, it makes no sense, but that's the rules. Ammo must be ground shipped.

Yes, this is far more expensive, and you cannot ship from a franchise outlet. You must go to a FedEx owned facility. But I found that I had a lot less hassle. Never wear camo or tote a camo backpack, so that you don't advertise anything "gunny" either.

Of course, you cannot ship guns or ammo internationally, so you are at the mercy of the morons at TSA and the airlines for that. Such a pity. Traveling used to be so much fun.

Best,

Dave

[WildmanJack]

chuckbuster,
I have recently had the experience of traveling with a rifle and two hand guns. TSA and the Airline agent both examined the weapons, and told me to lock the case. I asked if it wouldn't be prudent to check to see if they were loaded. They both refused. DUHHH.. Now make sure that the case he is using is AIR and WATER tight. My gun case was a Bass Pro Aluminum case with two locks, but NO waterproof or air tight gasket. So it was left on the tarmac at Atlanta Airport in a deluge rain storm,and when i got to Utah and had driven about 250 miles I found that the case was full and I mean FULL of water.. Delta didn't want to hear anything about it unless I brought the guns back.. I said how?? they said put them in the case. I said it was full of water. They said too bad, bring them back or we can't do anything about it...
Three months later and after numerous letters back and forth I got a $100.00 credit toward my "NEXT" flight !!!! Yeah right...
Good Luck,
jack