DES MOINES, Iowa- The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) discovered a loaded firearm Wednesday morning at the Des Moines International Airport.
The TSA says it was the 11th firearm intercepted so far this year, compared to six in all of 2017 at the Des Moines Airport.
It was Smith & Wesson, loaded with five rounds, and was detected by X-ray in a passenger's carry-on bag. A Des Moines Police officer took the gun, the passenger was cited and booked on a later flight.
Passengers who wish to travel with firearms can only place them in checked bags, if declared to the airline and properly packed, unloaded, in a hard-sided case.
Additional information can be found on the TSA's website.
TSA found a record-breaking 3,957 firearms at airport security checkpoints around the country in 2017, a 17 percent increase over 2016.