NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) – With the holidays right around the corner, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is reminding travelers what they can and can’t bring on a plane in their carry-on bag.
During a press conference on Thursday, Nov. 7, TSA officials displayed all of the prohibited items that had been surrendered at Norfolk International Airport (ORF) checkpoints within the last two months.
“Majority of them are knives. You’re going to see folding knives, fishing knives, hunting knives, tactical knives, knives on key chains, knives on bottle openers, just all different kinds of blades, and you’ll even see some box cutters,” Lisa Farbstein, a TSA Spokesperson said. “Everything you see on this table is okay to be transported in a checked bag.”
Farbstein warned travelers to not attempt to bring these types of items in a carry-on bag.
“The passengers are given the choice to put them in their check bag, run it back to their car, hand it off to a non-traveling companion, somebody you know, who maybe was dropping them off. And their last option is to voluntarily surrender to TSA,” Farbstein said.
Another frequent item officials said is making its way to ORF checkpoints is guns.
Jeffrey Horowitz, TSA’s Assistant Federal Security Director for ORF, said there’s been a record-breaking 33 firearms intercepted by November of 2024. He added that most of them were loaded.
“They’ll say I didn’t know it was in my bag, that’s the excuse,” Horowitz said.
He explained the police will be called, and that the traveler can face a civil penalty of up to $15,000 dollars and possibly miss their flight.
“I can’t stress enough on what happens to checkpoint operations. No one likes to wait in that line. But a lot of the reason why people are waiting in online, because your fellow passengers are bringing prohibitive items to the checkpoint,” Horowitz said.
For more information on what you can and can’t bring in your carry-on bag, visit the TSA’s website here.
