American Airlines Regulations??

[Dclewis]

Just wondreing if anyone here has flown AA with a rifle and ammo?? In several threads you have discusssed regulations pertaining to where to keep ammo and whether or not your case travels locked or not.
Im flying saturday to texas and im not sure id like my $1500.00 weapon to ship in a unlocked gun case.
I called a rep but she was not willing to give an answer because she was not at that particular airport. She did say she thought that I would have to bring ammo in my carry-on bag (go figure?).
Aparently you can bring on a box of High power rifle ammo and a book of matches but you cant bring on a bic lighter or razor.
I really hope my stuff travels well and travels locked.
Any thoughts or comments would be helpfull. Dave

[Yooper]

Hey.

Did some checking around on this and the regs are supposed to be stadard across the board for traveling with a firearm. I'd call the airline back and ask to speak to someone else to be honest as the person you spoke with obviously knew little. Your ammo doesn't go as a carry-on!

There is a buyer's guide on this site over in the Field Guides section on gun cases and it has the federal regs listed. You can't travel with an unlocked case so don't worry about that.

[Dclewis]

Thanks Lots Yooper!
Ill check them out and let you know the deal when I get back next week.

[jimbires]

I flew to missouri in november I used us airways. my gun case was locked. I had to open it so they could look at it. . the gun and clip must be empty . they put a tag on it and that was it, they locked the gun case but I was right there watching. the ammo had to be in a different checked bag. I was able to take up to 11 pounds of ammo . it needed to be in the factory box or the plastic box that you use for reloads. I took one of the plastic cases that hold 50 shells. I was only able to bring two checked bags, and one carry on. the gun case was one checked bag. the ammo had to be packed in the other checked bag with my clothes, NOT your carry on bag. since my clothes bag included my ammo it had to be locked also . they did NOT inspect it's contents .my knife had to be in my gun case . checked bags had a 50 pound limit each. and I think it was a 63 total inch limit L+W+H. my gun case was bigger than that but they didn't say anything about it. but my total weight was only 73 pounds. so maybe that helped.when you get there shoot your gun. my gun did great on the way out. the case looked like new .I shot it and it was right on. when I got home my gun case looked like it was used for a trampoline, the gun was still on but the case is about junk. have a great trip , good luck!I hope I helped. Jim

[Dclewis]

Just an update!

The flight went smooth as silk but my aluminium gun case was trashed. They checked the gun and asked if I had ammo. I did in another checked bag which was not even looked at. Coming back from mexico i was checked at 3 different locations. especially on the US side. but all was good. I wanted to bring my sons Javalina home for a mount but this was not allowed. The deer was no problem. Next time I will have a better gun case, perhaps one of the impact resistant plastic ones. At least the gun was still on. Thanks for all of your help guys, Dave

[turner1978]

I am going to fly from Idaho to alaska in september for an unguided caribou hunt and I am debating about weather to take my rifle on the flight with me or to ship it up with the rest of my gear ahead of time. I worry about my rifle getting lost in baggage and not having it for my hunt. which way would be the smartest?

[Yooper]

Glad to hear the hun went well. Check out an SKB case for an impact resistant composite. They're pretty hard to beat.

AS for shipping your gun. There are some +'s and -'s... You'd have to secure a gun dealer to accept your rifle, which isn't that hard, but there can be some fee's involved. Do a lot of checking around before you make that commitment. If you choose to fly, get a good case.

[turner1978]

We are debating about wether or not to fly or drive. It is a 3,000 mile one way trip and there are three of us going so it might be a litle cheaper to drive and we wouldn't have to worry about losing our rifles and gear.

[Dclewis]

Turner,

I was a bit nervous about flying with a weapon for the first time. This is why I was asking all the questions. Having completed the hunt, I would not hesitate a second to do it again. Infact ive already booked another Mexico hunt for next season and plan on booking another one for this fall (maybe Pronghorn out west).

The thing I would worry about is having real good cases for your weapons. My new aluminum case looked like it went thru a stone crusher when I got back. Waiting for our connecting flight in Dallas my son and I were watching the handlers loading baggage from the terminal window. It looked like they were having a competition who could throw the bags the furthest.

Be Advised, gun cases cant go thru the conveyor systems in a lot of airports. They will be handled seperatly and probably wont come out on the turntable with the rest of your luggage. This happened to me when we arrived at Lagurdia on our return trip. I was freaking out! After looking over by the lost baggage area I found it along the wall with the other oversized baggage. What a Zoo this place is. It would have been easy for anyone to grab and make off with.

I hope ive re-assured you, Dave