15 Bizarre Things TSA Has Found in Travelers’ Bags

Most airport bags are painfully predictable. Clothes, chargers, toiletries, maybe a sandwich someone will regret buying before a six-hour flight. Then there are the bags that make a TSA officer stop the conveyor belt and take a second look.

Over the years, travelers have shown up with everything from medieval armor and live animals to power tools, unusual souvenirs, and weapons hidden in places that only raise more questions. Some items were perfectly legal after additional screening. Others had absolutely no business getting anywhere near an airplane.

Seattle Travel reviewed TSA reports, airport accounts, and coverage of some of the stranger discoveries made during passenger screening. These are 15 of the more memorable things travelers have packed for a flight.

A traveler in Phoenix showed up with a large crystal ball packed in a carry-on. Crystal balls are not prohibited simply for being crystal balls, but a dense sphere of heavy glass can look unusual enough on an X-ray to earn some extra attention. Officers pulled the bag aside, inspected the object, and ultimately cleared it. No word on whether the traveler saw that coming.

A traveler in Las Vegas once checked something considerably heavier than an extra pair of shoes: a full suit of medieval-style armor. Large pieces of metal are obviously going to look interesting during baggage screening, and the armor required additional inspection before continuing on its way. It eventually traveled with its owner, proving there are apparently situations where "Did you remember your armor?" is a legitimate pre-flight question.

A chainsaw is already the kind of thing that deserves a careful look at an airport. A chainsaw that still contains gasoline takes things up another level. Gas-powered tools may be allowed in checked baggage only under specific conditions, and residual fuel or fumes can be a dealbreaker. Putting one in a carry-on is another matter entirely. Whatever tree needed cutting was going to have to wait.

Solid food is generally allowed through TSA checkpoints, which means a cooked chicken is not automatically forbidden. That does not mean an entire bird is going to look normal rolling through an X-ray machine. A traveler at Newark Liberty International Airport brought one along, giving officers a considerably stranger object to inspect than the usual airport snacks.

Whole poultry has also appeared in far less innocent TSA discoveries over the years, including cases where prohibited items were concealed inside food. So if your lunch looks unusually complicated on the scanner, expect somebody to take a closer look.

Bear spray is great equipment on the trail and terrible equipment in an airplane cabin. TSA does not allow bear spray in carry-on baggage. Travelers heading home from hiking trips sometimes forget that a can is still buried in a backpack, only to rediscover it when security does. It is worth emptying every pocket in your outdoor gear before heading to the airport, especially the one designed to stop a charging bear.

The movie title practically writes itself. At Miami International Airport, officers encountered a traveler attempting to get through security with live snakes concealed in his clothing. Body-scanning technology revealed something was not quite right, leading to a much closer inspection.

Transporting live reptiles can involve airline rules, wildlife regulations, permits, and customs requirements depending on the species and destination. Stuffing them into your pants skips pretty much all of that.

A gas-powered leaf blower created the same problem as the chainsaw: somebody packed it before dealing with the fuel. Gasoline and gasoline vapors create obvious safety concerns in aviation, so fueled yard equipment is not something that gets waved through because the lawn really needs attention. The passenger could continue traveling. The leaf blower could not.

A museum souvenir created a much bigger headache when a traveler brought along what appeared to be a Civil War-era cannonball. Even if you know an object is only a replica, security officers cannot make that assumption from an X-ray image. Anything resembling ammunition or an explosive can trigger a serious response until officers determine exactly what it is.

There is probably no souvenir important enough to justify explaining to airport security why your carry-on looks like it contains 19th-century artillery.

A laptop sleeve is usually where you find a laptop. One traveler apparently had a different storage strategy and packed a set of throwing stars instead. The sharp metal weapons were easy enough to spot during screening, and they were not allowed through the checkpoint.

TSA prohibits martial-arts weapons such as throwing stars in carry-on baggage. If your vacation somehow requires ninja equipment, checking the rules before reaching security would be a solid first step.

Sausages are not normally a security threat. Wrapping them around a knife changes the conversation considerably. TSA officers spotted an unusual shape during X-ray screening and discovered a blade surrounded by smoked sausage.

The food itself was not the problem. The knife was. There are easier ways to pack lunch, and virtually all of them involve significantly less explaining.

One traveler arrived at Denver International Airport carrying live fish in plastic bags filled with water. The passenger reportedly picked them up at a pet expo and then ran into the obvious problem of getting an aquatic souvenir through airport security.

Live fish can sometimes travel by air, but TSA, airline, and container requirements all come into play. This is one purchase where figuring out the trip home before buying the souvenir is probably wise.

An urn naturally receives careful treatment at an airport, but officers still need to determine that whatever is inside does not pose a threat. In this case, an urn labeled as containing ashes reportedly held beach sand and coins instead.

The container required additional screening before it could continue. What looked at first like a sensitive personal item turned out to be a particularly elaborate vacation souvenir.

One traveler apparently decided packing away the Christmas decorations was too much trouble and arrived with a small tree still fully dressed for the holidays. The tree and its ornaments required screening, but the festive carry-on eventually made it through.

There are people who travel light, and then there are people who refuse to let airport security interfere with Christmas.

A raw turkey is unusual enough luggage. A raw turkey being used to hide cash is going to get considerably more attention. TSA officers at Los Angeles International Airport discovered money concealed inside poultry during holiday travel.

Traveling domestically with cash is not automatically illegal, but deliberately hiding a large amount can prompt questions from authorities about where it came from and why it was concealed. The fact that the hiding place was Thanksgiving dinner probably did not make the explanation easier.

Finally, one passenger brought a full taxidermy squirrel through airport security. After officers determined that the very still passenger posed no threat, the squirrel was allowed to continue the trip.

It might not have been dangerous, but few things are going to make the person behind you in the security line reconsider what they packed faster than watching somebody pull a stuffed squirrel out of a carry-on.