Items Found by TSA Officers This Week (PHOTOS)

A week in the life of an airport security inspector is more interesting than one might think. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has posted a list of scary, dangerous, unique and weird things found this week.

"We continue to find inert hand grenades and other weaponry on [a] weekly basis," Bob Burns, a TSA officer, writes on their web site.

They remind passengers that weapons, even if they are fake or props, are prohibited. People packing these items cause "significant delays" in checkpoint screenings, very bad for passengers waiting to travel.

A grand total of the items discovered in security this week includes 32 firearms, 27 of which were loaded and five had rounds chambered, ammunition (which is allowed in checked baggage under the proper guidelines), firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, Airsoft guns, brass knuckles, batons, ten stun guns at San Francisco, Atlanta, Burlington, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Kansas City, Mercedita, New York La Guardia and San Diego, and "a lot of sharp pointy things."

The idea that passengers want to travel with these items does not make one feel safe. The idea they're stopped from taking them on the plane at security does help.

In addition to prohibited items, TSA officers have to deal with travelers that make inappropriate statements. Some of the things heard this week include a passenger flying out of San Juan who told the ticket agent that her bag contained a bomb and she was going to blow up the plane.

Aside from the obvious discomfort due to the threat to your safety that results from someone making a statement like that, other passengers are very inconvenienced, especially if the checkpoint or terminal have to be evacuated while the statement is investigated.

There was no bomb, but because of the threat, the ticket counter, checkpoint, and terminal were closed for almost an hour. There are also legal consequences to making dangerous statements.

For those that do travel with firearms, to do so legally and safely, they must be declared to the airline. Laws do vary and should be verified before traveling. Replicas or inert training items are not allowed on flights.