TSA finds record number of guns in carry-on bags

CHICAGO, IL -- Guns and airplanes don't mix, but every day at airports in Chicago and across the country, travelers try to bring guns through security.

Transportation Security Administration officers found a record 2,200 guns in carry-on baggage last year. Now, the number of confiscated carry-on guns made this past week a record week; 68 guns were found as travelers bags moved through airport X-ray scanners. They are among firearms, explosives, knives and other weapons that pose an increasing risk to air travelers.

"'I forgot' or 'didn't know it was in my bag' - that's the most two common excuses," said Kevin McCarthy, TSA.

Regardless of the reason, it is illegal to try to carry a gun onto a commercial aircraft. Nevertheless, this is the weekly haul for TSA. Pistols and revolvers - the majority of them loaded - and some with a bullet in the chamber ready to be fired.

The record 68 firearms seized by TSA last week has put the agency on a course to far exceed last year's record. The data steadily climbing year-to-year, even as more attention is focused on the fact that you can't bring guns on planes - and it isn't just guns.

Explosives - real and real-looking - are also found by federal security officers inside the carry-on bags of common travelers, along with knives and concealed weapons of all kinds. A stun gun cane was found on a traveler at Chicago's O'Hare in mid-October.