Legality of carrying spent ammunition
Recently I was visiting my grandfather and we went gun shooting, I shot a barret .50 caliber rifle and some other automatics and were able to keep a few of the casings as a keepsake. Is it legal to fly home with it in a carryon or must I put it in a bag on the top of my luggage?
Best Answer
Even if it is legal (which I don't know, and would likely depend on both the state you're flying from, the state you're flying to, possibly any state you're making stopovers as well), I'd not put it in my carryon because of the way the TSA is almost guaranteed to overreact.
Putting it in your hold luggage is less likely to cause them to go ape, but you still run the risk of having them break open your luggage and going through it.
Best you can probably do is send it home as a small parcel using something like FedEx or UPS (and be sure to comply with whatever rules they have for sending munitions through them).
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Can you fly with spent ammunition?
Empty shell casings are allowed in carry-on bag as long as the projectile is no longer intact. They are allowed only if the primer has been removed or has been discharged. If the projectile is attached & the powder has been drilled out, it is considered a replica and not allowed in carry-on.How long does ammunition last if stored properly?
Ammunition isn't a perishable good - if stored correctly, it can last almost indefinitely. Whether it was stored correctly or not is another matter. Ammunition isn't like the still-edible 5000-year-old honey found in Egyptian tombs; ready to eat and spread on toast.Quick Tip: The Do's \u0026 Don'ts of Ammo Storage
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Answer 2
I recently tried to carry unused cartridge cases in my hold luggage and the declaration at the check-in desk said that the unused cases had to be treated in the same way as live ammunition and carried in a separate locked hard-sided case checked in as hold luggage. Returning to United Kingdom from South Africa, Johannesburg - O.R.Tambo International Airport flying Air France. Not sure if this is an international ruling or one particular to South Africa.
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