Legal Requirements for Flying in US with Paintball Markers

[dawump]

I'd like to start a thread on travel as it is going to be an issue soon ( I see a thread specifically for Aruba ) and getting this wrong could end up with serious implications.

I've just spoken to Denver International Airport and their advice is to follow the proceedure for transporting firearms, which is that it must be checked and it must be declared. They have not changed the firearms proceedure since the disasters, so this seems to make sense.

They said for sure that trying to bring a paintball gun on to a plane as hand luggage would be a VERY bad idea.

Also, my apologies for mistakenly starting this thread in the Tech forum. Perhaps a moderator could delete it?

Keith

[Muzikman]

The problem is your tanks. The guns they would have no problem with as long as you check them in as bagage. But, your tank CO2 or HPA will have a very hard time getting on. Even before all the things that have happened this week, taking compressed air tanks onto a plane was very dificult. You had to prove that the tank was empty and that the valve was open. I have a feeling that they will probably crack down on this and probably will not want to deal with these headaches when there are so many other issues. At this time I would personaly not fly with my gun, tanks or tools. I'd package them up, and ship them off to your destination.

[cphilip]

OK I took care of the one in Tech. You know that you as the thread starter have that option too don't you?

This is a very important subject right now. I hope we can get some response but I doubt anyone will be able to answer this right now. Things are so unclear at thsi point.

There is another thread specifically about Aruba which is fast aproaching. But since these are two distinctly different subjects right now (intra and interstate air vs. international air travel) I will not try and merge them at this point. But I will link that one here too.

http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12231

Lets light this candle! Anyone know anything? Yet?

[Restola]

my mom is a ticket agents at continental at cleveland hopkins airport. next time i speak with her i will ask. i would guess it would be a day or more before she found an answer. but ill post when i can.

[slushee]

maby the wrong post, but why not throw my two cents in..

I'm from Southern Ontario, Canada. I will be crossing the boarder soon to attend the AGD tour in Wheeling. I just got off the phone with United States Customs and apparently; as long as both the marker and compressed air tank are declared, the only thing to worry about is a longer wait.

Apparently no new regulations are planned for boarder crossings; just more thorough checks.

[Evil Bob]

I have traveled all over the world with my paintball gear without too many problems. If you're prepared, the worst you can expect is to open up your luggage and show someone what it is you have. I have yet to meet anyone who has never heard of the sport, in fact, I've been asked to open my luggage and show several security agents my marker because they were players and wanted to see the new E-Mag (last May flying back from the UK).

Rules to live by:

1) NEVER EVER take a marker or an air system onto the aircraft as a carry on item. Get yourself a good, rugged, locking gun case to transport your marker and air system in, isolate it from the rest of your clothes and gear in this case and check it in. Isolate those items by themselves, that way if you need to open anything for inspection, it's all in one case, saving you and the airline security time. There are many manufacturers of excellant gun cases, Doskocil, Starlight, Pelican, and others. Ideally you want a case that has a modifiable foam lining so your marker will fit securely and not move around. You also want a case that can take some serious abuse. You want one you can put a burly pad lock on to make sure it stays closed, never trust a built in luggage lock by itself, a clever person with a screwdriver can usually bypass those. I personally use cases from Doskocil, mainly for the size and price. Cabela's online catalog has several to chose from with good pricing. I use a Doskocil Extra Large All Weather case, it measures 20" x 16" x 9", not too heavy to lug around an airport, not too big to be inconvenient. Here's the link direct to their case selection:

http://www.cabelas.com/texis/scripts...FALL1998AAAaAD

2) Paintball markers in some countries are considered firearms, know the laws and regulations of the country you're flying to BEFORE you fly there. Germany, for example, has some pretty sticky laws regarding markers. A worst case scenario is you getting tossed in jail and/or your marker confiscated. If you're traveling inside the US, tell the ticketing agent that you have paintball equipment in your luggage, usually it's no big deal and they don't need to mark it since it's not considered a firearm here in the US. If you do fly to a country where markers are considered firearms, you will want to have the airlines mark it as such on the outside of the case, that way the security at the other end know what to expect. Be sure you have all the correct paperwork and permits for the country you're flying to.

3) Never transport air systems with air in them, it's against the FAA regulations. I've been stopped to show security that my air systems are empty more then any other type of inspection request. This is a major security concern to the airlines, they don't want air bottles exploding inside their aircraft at 37,000 feet, and considering you're on the same aircraft, you don't want them to explode either.

4) Always smile, even if you're tired and haven't slept in 72 hours, and you lost every game of the tournament, and your hotel flooded, and you ended up living in a card board box under a bridge for a week, cooperate with any request to show your equipment when the airlines personel ask. Smile, show them you're proud of your stuff, that you want to show it to them, be as obvious as possible that you're not trying to hide something, don't give them an excuse to toss you and your stuff off of the plane.

5) When in doubt, contact the airlines and find out, better safe then sorry.

Evil Bob

[Muzikman]

If I am not mistaken it was Webby who was not allowd to bring his tanks onto a US Air flight going to the IAO. So with all that has gone on this week, dont be supprised if they don't let even empty tanks on to a plane. I mean they are not even giving you a plastic knife with your meals any more (a co-worker just got back from UK told me this).

[RobAGD]

Bad Dave has it right :)

In 10 years of travel with my equipment I have has maybe 3 problems.

#1 was 45 Grips, I has a set of Perl grips I bought last minute at a tournamnet for my ParaOrdance. I didnt think anything of it and the security guy freaked. Caused me to miss my fight. Bonus for me as I got home an Hour Earlier :)

This guy was just a moron. Thinking 2 grip pannels look too much like a gun...

#2 - Traveling into Canada I declared the Markers as firearms as I was instrusted ( from teh customs people the previous year ) and I almost got a body cavity search because some old geezer didnt know what a paintball marker was :) The Security guy with the rubber gloves ( and a grin ) asked what kind of firearm I has with me and I said well it's a paintball marker, he said "Ok have a nice day, Ill go slap the old man around a bit" Really funny dude.

#3 - Never forget the 12grams that are rolling around in the bottom of your gear bag :) Doh !


As far as Air tanks I never claim the on state side trips because people raise more of a stink with thier ignorance than it help solves. Prime example is Webby's fun with an Airline full of complete idiots.

For World Cup I am shipping as much stuff as I can. I see traveling with my tool box and parts is going to be one major PITA.

-Robert

[Evil Bob]

Bad Dave? I don't see a post in this thread from Bad Dave....

I've been pretty lucky, everyone I've run into has at least heard of the sport, a few had acutally played it.

My favorite stop was flying back from London Heathrow last May, My wife and kids and I had just taken our seats and I was just settling in for the 10 hour flight when one of the flight attendants asked me to exit the plane and see security. "Uh, ok, no problem" thinking they probably want to make sure my air bottles are empty. I got up, and made my way to the front of the plane and was taken out a side door and down near the tarmac. There I saw 4 grinning people, 2 of them female, who were standing around my marker case looking pretty excited. When we got up to them, this short blond woman smiled and asked "do you play paintball?" pointing at the case which is covered with AGD and other paintball stickers. "Yep, all the time, love the game." "Can we see it, it's an E-Mag, right?" "How'd you know?" "Xray machine." "Good guess." So I unlocked the case and pulled it out and it was passed around for 15 minutes while we chatted about paintball. Then the short blond woman pulled up her skirt showing her thigh to everyone, she had a big purple paintball welt that was clearly visible under her pantyhose, "I played for the first time yesterday, can't wait to play again next weekend!" Then the discussion turned to bruises in embarrasing or painful locations. One of the male security agents said to the others "I don't know, we may need to confiscate this one, I may need it for next sunday." I eventually closed and locked my case back up and was escorted back onto the aircraft. When I reached my family, my wife had a concerned look on her face, I had been gone for close to 30 minutes and the plane's departure had been delayed by 15. The flight crew had apparenty announced over the PA that the departured had been delayed due to security problems with someone's luggage. I sat down and smiled and wispered to her "newbie paintballers."

Evil Bob

[FDB1]

nice story...thats pretty cool...