From knives hidden in walking canes to inert hand grenades, the Transportation Security Administration seized thousands of dangerous items at airports in 2016.
13 Shocking Items Confiscated at the Airport
This weaponized cane was discovered among a traveler’s carry-on property in Baltimore.
Confiscated items are drawn from the TSA's Instagram feed. The descriptions have been edited for clarity.
This post-apocalyptic, bullet-adorned gas mask was discovered in a carry-on bag in Miami. While gas masks are allowed in carry-on bags, replica bullets are not.
© Instagram / TSA
The traveler who packed this vest in his checked bag at Richmond stated it was a prop intended for use in a live-action role-playing game. Fortunately, explosives experts determined the vest posed no danger.
© Instagram / TSA
Not only are large bottles of liquor prohibited, but so are the five dead seahorses that were inside the bottle. This bizarre carry-on item was discovered in Detroit. Officers from Michigan Fish and Game confiscated the bottle.
© Instagram / TSA
In 2016, TSA found 3,391 guns in carry-on luggage. That’s an average of nine firearms a day.
© Instagram / TSA
These are just a few of the inert grenades discovered in checked and carry-on bags last year. All grenades, real and inert, are prohibited from both carry-on and checked bags.
© Instagram / TSA
Inside a computer tower and underneath all that colorful modeling clay and duct-taped is a 9mm firearm. It was discovered in a checked bag at Houston Airport.
© Instagram / TSA
A box of festively wrapped heroin was discovered in a checked bag in Los Angeles.
© Instagram / TSA
This axe was concealed under the lining of a carry-on bag in Tampa.
© Instagram / TSA
This cattle prod was discovered in a carry-on bag at the Chicago Midway Airport. Shocking devices, especially cattle prods, are not allowed in carry-on bags.
© Instagram / TSA
These two pocket knives and a small amount of marijuana were discovered at the Seattle/Tacoma International Airport. They were found in a plastic bag and matchbox that had been wrapped in wire and sealed with duct tape and a glue gun.
© Instagram / TSA
A traveler in Newark attempted to take his hoe on a plane. Gardening hoes should be in checked bags if you really need them.
© Instagram / TSA
During Thanksgiving weekend, this angle grinder was discovered in a carry-on bag at Atlanta.
© Instagram / TSA