Let me tell you about my trip, aka as the second time I've had the cops call on me...

[PPGMD]

So I was returning my car to the airport, and this airport is one of those small a dozen flights a day airport. I approach the rental car return, and there is a rent a cop.

The rental cop asks me to pop my trunk, he looks in there, and then asks me if I had any guns in the vehicle. In a rare moment of honest to a rent a cop, I said yes. He looks at me like I just admitted to murdering hookers and disposing them in the harbor. And says that I can't come into the rental car return. I insisted and he called the Airport Police.

The police officer asked me the same question, and I said yes, there are locked in my bag. He asked me for my ID. I gave him my Florida drivers license, Florida CWP, and my Texas CHL (I was in Texas so I figured he might trust that more than my Florida one). He checks the trunk and asks me if I had a gun on me, I said no (small airport which means no cell phone lot which is where I normally disarm, so I did so at the range). He said good because the TSA frowns upon taking them through the check point. Gives me my documents and tells me to go return my car.

The officer was polite, but the rent a cop was an idiot. People travel with guns all the time, this isn't something that requires the airport police to be called.

Of course there are many small town airport oddities like the TSA taking longer to clear you through a checkpoint than at a major hub airport. And waiting ten minutes for an arriving airplane, at DFW they could've gotten 3-4 flights through in the time we waited. I really hate these small town government employees, at least in the big towns they are forced to at process things at a reasonable pace, there is no such requirement in the small towns.

[Totem Polar]

Wait, I'm confused: what even made him ask in the first place? Were you wearing a Sturm-Ruger jacket, Glock hat, S&W belt buckle and yellow wrap around shades, or was the trunk filled with empty brass, or what?
:confused:

[LHS]

I've seen a wide range of reactions to traveling with firearms. I had a Walther P1 in my luggage at one point, and the TSA guy manning the X-ray machine just blurts out, in the middle of the terminal for all to hear, "Dude, a Walther P-38! Awesome, my grandpa brought one of those back from the war!"

I mean, yeah, it's cool that you know what it is, but for crying out loud, do you have to alert the entire ticketing floor that my bag has a gun in it, and is thus a giant theft target?

[MDS]

Sucks, but that's why I give myself extra time when checking guns. Surprising that this happened in Texas, I've had nothing but awesome gun-related interactions with le there. Maybe the rent a cop was a California transplant? ;)

[PPGMD]

Wait, I'm confused: what even made him ask in the first place? Were you wearing a Sturm-Ruger jacket, Glock hat, S&W belt buckle and yellow wrap around shades, or was the trunk filled with empty brass, or what?
:confused:

I had the shooters bag (contained the catalogs and such I never take those home) from the match in the trunk. Though honestly it sounded like his normal questions. I could've lied but I was tired from shooting all day, and I was late (if you saw a white Impala doing 80+ mph down a Texas back road yesterday, that might have been me).

Also I think, but I can't be sure but the airport cop was making it clear to the rent a cop that people coming with checked guns aren't a problem as I was departing.

Honestly this is the first time I've had issues traveling in the south. Granted I typically fly through major airports

[Tamara]

Of course there are many small town airport oddities like the TSA taking longer to clear you through a checkpoint than at a major hub airport.

Oh, man, tell me about it. The Redmond, OR airport this summer was an eye-opener. You'd think a small airport in the middle of the Oregon outback would be fairly casual about guns, but is was a nightmare, unlike Portland, OR which inexplicably remains the most hassle-free firearms check-in in my limited experiences.

[Gadfly]

Flying out of Pittsburg a few years back, I had an AR upper in my bag. No Lower, no bolt carrier. It is not a firearm, but just to make the airline happy, I even put a padlock through the open ejection port. I did not declare a firearm at the ticket counter because....well, there was no firearm. Of course, an X-ray scan of my bag showed an outline that set off bells and whistles, and I was called back from the gate to the security check point to answer for my crimes.

I explained the fact that there was a steel pipe in my bag, not a firearm. They did not seem impressed. I then played what I thought was my trump card. My Federal LEO badge. I explained that I had already cleared security, and was actually carrying a primary and back up pistol on the flight. And a pocket knife... So what was the big deal about a gun part in my bag? I was returning home from an armorer's course, and actually had a lot of gun parts in my bag. They only cared about the barrel, but none of the other parts (springs, night sights, grip screws, sight pushers etc) ... Finally someone up the supervisory food chain came out and allowed my checked bag to go on. I was told if I had just carried the bag on the flight with me, none of this would have happened. Now I always carry on my bags. The irony is, I can carry a real, live, loaded gun on the plane, and no one cared. But a gun part nearly shut down the security system.

I have just as much fun when I have gone to a instructors school. My dirty range clothing in my bag apparently set off the explosive sniffer at the airport. TSA is not very understanding of these little misunderstandings.

[PPGMD]

Oh, man, tell me about it. The Redmond, OR airport this summer was an eye-opener. You'd think a small airport in the middle of the Oregon outback would be fairly casual about guns, but is was a nightmare, unlike Portland, OR which inexplicably remains the most hassle-free firearms check-in in my limited experiences.

That was my experience also. The only annoyance was the fact that the "oversized" check in area is on the completely opposite side of the airport from Southwest.

Anyways I think I have disproved the "Don't go shooting in the same cloths you wear to the airport." When I arrived at the airport the only thing I had done post shooting was washing my hands. Everything else was the same stuff I wore at the match right down to my range boots. I did my usual opt out, which means they test everything with the explosive detector. No issues.

[TGS]

That was my experience also. The only annoyance was the fact that the "oversized" check in area is on the completely opposite side of the airport from Southwest.

Anyways I think I have disproved the "Don't go shooting in the same cloths you wear to the airport." When I arrived at the airport the only thing I had done post shooting was washing my hands. Everything else was the same stuff I wore at the match right down to my range boots. I did my usual opt out, which means they test everything with the explosive detector. No issues.

When I flew out of Albuquerque last week after a week-long bomb course, the guys with the residue patches just looked at us and asked, "Umm, you guys been at Socorro the past week?"

"Yup." (we're about to laugh)

"Uhuh. Alright have a good one. Sir (points to random dude behind us), we need you to step over here for a quick test."

The bunch of us started cracking up. Just the day prior I was purposely kicking around my suede shoes in a warm, fresh 250lbs ANFO car-bomb crater, simply to see how heavy I would pop a residue test.

[Tamara]

When I flew out of Albuquerque last week...

Except for the actual physical layout of the TSA checkpoint, I like ABQ.

[Paul D]

I have taken guns out of the country on African safaris. Compared, to places like Britain and the Netherlands, the USA has very liberal gun regulations. Taking guns through South Africa is painful.

[RoyGBiv]

I've waited as long as I can stand....

When was the FIRST time?

[PPGMD]

I've waited as long as I can stand....

When was the FIRST time?

Many many years ago. I think I was still in elementary school.