Some may find the TSA's requirement of taking off your shoes to be inconvenient and annoying, but it certainly isn't pointless. The Transportation Security Administration recently found a dagger hidden in someone's shoe.
The TSA keeps track of their finds at airports across the United States through their TSA Blog. On Friday, they posted a photo of a The 3 1/2-inch double edged knife that was found in the sole of a shoe on a man at San Diego International Airport on February 15.
The TSA requires passengers to take off their shoes before they go through metal detectors or body scanners.
The only passengers that are exceptions from the shoe removal rule are passengers 12 an under, passengers 75 and older, members of the military and TSA PreCheck and Global Entry participants.
Among other items that were found this past week at airport include 26 firearms, 24 of which were loaded and seven had rounds chambered. Someone had hid a loaded magazine in the handle of a carry-on bag at Norfolk International Airport in Virginia. The TSA also confiscated several replica grenade devices.
While the TSA often catches people carrying illegal items, the TSA's practices might sometimes seem a bit ridiculous. Recently the TSA detained and traumatized a three-year-old girl in a wheelchair. They took away her stuffed animal and said that they had to swab her wheelchair for explosive materials. They girl was left in tears and said she didn't want to go to Disney World anymore. The TSA agents also scolded the parents for filming the incident, which is legal to do. The agents told the parents that it was illegal.
The TSA also misses weapons sometimes. This past fall, the TSA failed to spot not one, but two loaded guns. The passengers were able to fly with the weapons and weren't discovered until after the flight.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
