Can you fly with a gun? Yes, but there are rules and regulations that you must follow. Some set by the government and some by each individual airline. We’ll cover some of the regulations … but first, if you’re new to the gun world you may ask the question: why would you want to fly with a gun?
I see three reasons right off:
1. You’re flying somewhere to hunt.
2. You’re a competitive shooter and flying to a match.
3. You want to have a gun for self-protection.
It doesn’t matter what the reason, the rules are the same. When you get to the ticket counter you have to declare that you have a firearm. They will ask you if it is unloaded and locked in a hard container. They will then have you sign and date an orange “Declaration Card” which is later taped to the gun box. In Boise, you will then be directed to go down to the left to have TSA check it out.
The firearm must be locked in a hard sided container. Many pistols come with a traveling case. For rifles, you will have to buy one. Forty something years ago Frontier Airlines would rent you a case for $20. The first time I flew with a rifle I was headed to Texas for a deer hunt. The ticket lady told me that if I didn’t bring it back that they’d keep my $20. She said if I wanted to keep it, she’d go get me a new one in a box.
Now, there are a plethora of gun cases to choose from. Most are lined with foam to protect your scoped rifles. These types of gun cases work fine but all that you can fit into them is your guns and maybe a knife or two. So you’re paying the airline for one bag that only has your guns in it.
Seven years ago I discovered a gun case made by Explorer that had no inner foam. They utilize a canvas carrying case. At first, I didn’t like it. I thought that’s stupid, it won’t protect my scope. But I used it on a trip to Alaska for a brown bear and duck hunt and fell in love with it. Here’s why.
When you go on a hunt, you have to take a ton of gear. Clothing — pants, shirts, base layers, coats, gloves, etc. etc. Then your guns, ammo, optics, knives, camera, maybe waders and the list goes on and on.
With my foamless case I could lay shirts/pants on the bottom, lay the canvas case on top with the guns in it and then lay more clothes on top. Wow. This was almost like having an extra bag of clothes. Plus, I could put my binoculars in the case and they’d be padded.
I fell in love with this concept of luggage. It is the only one like it that I’ve seen on the market. But what if you already own an expensive gun case and can’t (or don’t want to) buy another one? It just hit me while I’m sitting here typing but I guess you could remove the foam out of your existing case and be set. That’s better than flying a luggage half full of foam around the country!
So, if you go the above route, I’d recommend getting a canvas gun case to put your gun in to stick in the case. Plus, you can carry your gun around in the canvas case when hunting. For a pistol you can lock it in a smaller case and put in your unlocked suit case.
Some gun cases have holes for two locks. My Explorer case has holes for six locks which is a pain because Delta requires you to have a lock in every hole. You don’t want a real long necked lock because a thief may be able to pop open the closures on the gun case and be able to stick his hand into your case and pull something out (plus TSA will ding you).
On the other hand, I like longer necked locks to ensure that they can be locked. To alleviate any problems with TSA I carry a baggie of washers. I put a few on the backside of the neck of the lock and then lock the lock in place. Then, even if a thief opens the clasps on the case, he cannot pry open the top. I started doing this years ago.
I always carry 1-2 extra locks in case one malfunctions, which would be a disaster. I’ve never had a problem until … the other day. TSA wanted to open my case to inspect it upon arriving at their booth and for some reason the key wouldn’t work. No biggee. I let them cut the lock since I had an extra one.
What about ammo? Some airlines say ammo has to be in the original container but here is an excerpt from the TSA website:
• Small arms ammunition (up to .75 caliber and shotgun shells of any gauge) must be packaged in a fiber (such as cardboard), wood, plastic, or metal box specifically designed to carry ammunition and declared to your airline.
• Ammunition may be transported in the same hard-sided, locked case as a firearm if it has been packed as described above. You cannot use firearm magazines or clips for packing ammunition unless they completely enclose the ammunition. Firearm magazines and ammunition clips, whether loaded or empty, must be boxed or included within a hard-sided, locked case.
• Please check with your airline for quantity limits for ammunition.
You can carry your ammo in the original box but over time, a factory cardboard box starts to deteriorate. I just discovered some lightweight plastic containers called Ammo Buddy made by Clamtainer. That’s what I use now. They’re also great to carry extra ammo while backpacking or packing into elk camp. I would classify them as somewhat water resistant, at least as compared to a factory cardboard box.
As far as I can tell TSA doesn’t limit you on how much ammo you can carry but airlines seem to set their own limits. Delta allows up to 11 pounds and in the past United has told me they allow 10 pounds.
Tom Claycomb lives in Idaho and has outdoors columns in newspapers in Alaska, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Colorado and Louisiana. He also writes for various outdoors magazines and teaches outdoors seminars at stores like Cabela’s, Sportsman’s Warehouse and Bass Pro Shop. He can be reached via email at smileya7@aol.com.
