Santa Barbara Municipal Airport TSA Officers Discover Firearm in Carry-on Luggage

SANTA BARBARA, California – Officers with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) at Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) stopped a male traveler from bringing a loaded firearm onto an aircraft Thursday, June 29. The firearm was discovered during routine X-ray screening of carry-on luggage at the airport’s security checkpoint.

The firearm find occurred around noon at SBA when a TSA officer spotted the image of a handgun on the X-ray screen. TSA notified officers with the Santa Barbara Airport Patrol who responded to the security checkpoint and removed the firearm from the X-ray tunnel. The passenger, who was ticketed for travel to Denver International, was escorted out of the security checkpoint by law enforcement.

The firearm – a loaded 9 mm Smith & Wesson – was in the carry-on bag along with a magazine loaded with 11 rounds of ammunition and an additional magazine with 10 rounds of ammunition located in the carry-on. This is the third firearm discovered in carry-on luggage at SBA so far this year. In all of 2022, TSA officers discovered two firearms at SBA at the security checkpoint.