So, what's the strangest/silliest thing TSA has taken from you?

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

When my hair was long I had it put up in a messy bun, and had in old fashion metal bobbie pins, and they made me take my hair down due to the number of pins in my hair.
They did let me keep the bobbie pins, but it was a hassle. They scanned my head like 5 times to keep checking...

Kids scissors that only cut paper, the all plastic ones with no metal... which the supervisor gave back to me, when I asked for a supervisor... He was like what in the world... give the lady the kids scissor back right now...

Sunscreen which I am still wondering about... but the sunscreen in DH bag was okay... yep they were the same thing size and ounces... we didn't say anything just shook our heads as we walked off...

I had a empty souvenir cup, insulated with the lid and straw kinda deal... it was in the bag, and still had the plastic on the top of the cup... and they tore it apart, and wiped it down with those little papers... then said your good to go... I was like unbelievable....

Don't you know that the baggie has magical qualities provided by Harry Potter? The entire liquid ban is the biggest security joke out there! Does nothing to help you get safer but does add to the 'theatre' of 'we are doing something' (something effective apparently not required!)

 

[shocker]

As posters go through this thread, please remember that it was started in 2013! A lot has changed with TSA and security since then. Carry on.

Yes, I noticed the same thing. Funny how they get resurrected sometimes. Yet, all these years later, we're still having odd things taken away.

Years ago, maybe when this thread was started, I had my drivers license taken away from me while they investigated my bags. I was then told I was carrying a spray can of Static Guard and it had an ingredient that is considered hazardous, they took it from me (I didn't have another alternative) and I was required to sign a log book stating that I tried to bring a hazardous material on a plane before they would give me the DL back. It was my fourth trip thru TSA that week with the same said can of Static Guard.

More recently (about 3 months ago), I went thru a TSA line with what seemed like a hyper vigilant trainee behind the screen monitor for the xray belt. He was flagging nearly 100% of bags to be gone thru by another agent. The line was moving snail pace. My first bag got flagged (a computer work bag), the second agent takes it, rifles through everything and feeling like he needs to come up with a "legitimate" reason for it to be flagged, tells me that I "have too much paper," and it looks dense on the screen and the have to go through it. He picked up my notebooks and fanned the pages and gave everything back to me. As he turns around, he see's my second bag (roller) has also been flagged. He grabs it, looks at the guy behind the monitor and says "really?" He rifles through my second bag and again needing to find a "legitimate" reason states "these round hard candies (mints) are what triggered the search." (This was before our new need to declare food items). I could almost hear his eyes rolling as he handed back my bags.

 

[DVC-Don]

I've never had anything taken from me at any TSA across the country. Not even back in 2013 when this thread started. I've been flying about the country and Europe about 6 or 7 times a year since before TSA.

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

In 2001, they took my folding craft scissors. The blades were barely long enough to cut a piece of yarn , but in October of that year, you couldn't fly with them. My other bags were already long gone, so had to toss them.

When DD#2, GS#2 and I flew to Omaha to see DD#1, TSA at Orlando spent 20 minutes swabbing and discussing GS's small, unopened can of baby formula powder. TSA in Omaha (leaving) spent almost 40 minutes with DD's carry on of snacks and another can of unopened powdered formula. They also checked the baby wipes.


This past New Years Eve, I lost a bag of cashews to the TSA at Jax. They swabbed all the snacks (and I had a ton of them, as it was me and my 21 month old grandson, for a 10 hour trip cross country), and something about the unopened bag of salt and pepper cashews was "off". They were in the bag with all the other snacks, so I'm not sure how that bag was affected and not any of the other bags. The TSA guy was cranky, so maybe he needed a Snickers, and my cashews were the closest thing to the actual Snickers bar in my bag.

On the flight home for just me, 14 hours later, at San Diego airport, the trail mix that made it through unscathed in Jax was swabbed at least 5 times. (Yes I flew East coast to West coast and back again the same day. I was home 24 hours after I left, down to the minute.) I got to keep the trail mix, though.

 

[kaytieeldr]

In 2001, they took my folding craft scissors. The blades were barely long enough to cut a piece of yarn , but in October of that year, you couldn't fly with them.

Less than two months after four planes were taken over by men with sharp objects (granted, box cutters) and crashed (or attempted to be crashed) into large, well-known buildings? Yeah, no issue with such items being prohibited.

 

[CeruleanMoon]

Do people get their things back when they are taken? Do they mail them to you or something?

I was traveling alone in Europe in 1993. I had a small travel alarm clock in my bag and the agent at Heathrow took a fit over it. Now I get that bombs are frequently described as having timers on them, but surely traveling alarm clocks must have been a common sight at an airport? (This was the 90's remember, no cell phones, so alarm clocks were all we had!) It was small and battery operated, so no weird wires. He chastised me like I'd done something wrong and I should have known better. I'd brought that alarm clock all over Europe with me. It was odd.

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

Wow! Very old thread!

Last month my husband had his credit card screwdriver taken away. It's a square piece of metal, that is thin like a credit card, and the edges have different sized screwdriver heads on it. The TSA agent in Denver said "switch blade" to the other TSA agent and he then called us over. There is no blade on this item, but they confiscated it anyway. My husband was actually really upset despite the fact that it only cost me $10.
Two years ago in Zurich, Switzerland my daughter was trying to go through the TSA line with a rock in her backpack that she'd gotten from Germany. We had no idea that she'd taken a rock -- and everyone laughed about it, except her who was embarassed and in tears. By the way, they allowed her to keep it!

 

[sam_gordon]

Do people get their things back when they are taken? Do they mail them to you or something?

If you bring something that's not allowed*, you generally have the choice of giving it up to TSA (they'll throw it out) or leaving the security line and doing something with the prohibited item (mailing it, putting it back in a car, etc). If you give it up to TSA, you won't get it back.

*Not getting into what's allowed and not allowed.

 

[CeruleanMoon]

If you bring something that's not allowed*, you generally have the choice of giving it up to TSA (they'll throw it out) or leaving the security line and doing something with the prohibited item (mailing it, putting it back in a car, etc). If you give it up to TSA, you won't get it back.

*Not getting into what's allowed and not allowed.

Thanks. I was wondering how they handled it.

 

[amccu18007]

I travel often and pack only a backpack. I am a light packer and have everything in clear bags etc. I had a pack of pull and peel twizzlers in my bag. A very overachieving TSA xray guy had my bag pulled, stopped the line and ran over to bust me. The checker absolutely laughed out loud when he pulled out the licorice. No sweat off my back and I went on my merry way!

 

[Amanda999]

A tampon. Seriously. It apparently looked like something else (perhaps the initial 'tv' screener was a younger man with no sisters/mom growing up?) so I got sent for extra screening by hand - with my 2 then little boys. Fun. (They did give it back after all the screening, but I declined.)

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

.......
Two years ago in Zurich, Switzerland my daughter was trying to go through the TSA line with a rock in her backpack that she'd gotten from Germany. We had no idea that she'd taken a rock -- and everyone laughed about it, except her who was embarassed and in tears. By the way, they allowed her to keep it!

The TSA does not work in Switzerland; they are a US organization. In Switzerland, it is the Federal Office of Civil Aviation.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Two years ago in Zurich, Switzerland my daughter was trying to go through the TSA line with a rock in her backpack that she'd gotten from Germany. We had no idea that she'd taken a rock -- and everyone laughed about it, except her who was embarassed and in tears. By the way, they allowed her to keep it!

This reminds me that last year, I was coming back from spending Easter with my Mom. At church, everyone was given a painted rock with a nice religious saying on it (mine said "God loves you). Finally they pulled it out of the backpack and the TSA agent got the closest to laughing I'd ever seen from TSA. He just said "Well, it looked like it could be dangerous" and gave it back.

 

[Maliki2]

Seriously? You can't see how those forks could be used as a weapon!?!? They're made to skewer things like meat. It wouldn't take much to put those through somebody's neck.

If you had seen the 'weapon' a patient used on my wife and almost killed her you'd understand and it was a lot less substantial than that. And he put it through her arm first.

Wish you had used a better examples for a lighthearted thread than something that obviously could be used and should be flagged by the TSA.

*clap* *clap*. I work as a Court Officer, even the Sheriffs with their prisoners in the holding cells didn't think anything about a pencil until one prisoner stabbed another in the neck with it. Those Fondue forks could be much deadlier than a pencil!

 

[Maliki2]

Wow! Very old thread!

Last month my husband had his credit card screwdriver taken away. It's a square piece of metal, that is thin like a credit card, and the edges have different sized screwdriver heads on it. The TSA agent in Denver said "switch blade" to the other TSA agent and he then called us over. There is no blade on this item, but they confiscated it anyway. My husband was actually really upset despite the fact that it only cost me $10.
Two years ago in Zurich, Switzerland my daughter was trying to go through the TSA line with a rock in her backpack that she'd gotten from Germany. We had no idea that she'd taken a rock -- and everyone laughed about it, except her who was embarassed and in tears. By the way, they allowed her to keep it!

We take those pocket multi tools at court all the time. Most have a knife on them, and most are just as bad as a edged blade. I personally have never seen one without a knife built in.

 

[Ceilidhscot]

Not TSA but flying out of Cairns, Oz and security wanted to check my bag as said there was something suspicious.

Opened bag and looked inside. Nothing out the ordinary - passports, purse and camera. No sharp pointy things, no liquids, nothing.

Put it back through but guy at the x-ray machine kept saying “nope, definitely something”

So they took everything out the bag and scanned purse, camera and passports separately..all fine.

Puts through the bag again - now completely empty.

Guy is adamant there is “something like a ruler but pointed”. The lassie holding the bag says “there’s nothing in it - I’ve checked”

So he grabs it off her and starts feeling all round - hauling the lining outside the bag...no rips, nothing pointy.

Puts it back through the machine again...points at screen and says “see, I’m not imagining it” to the other security lady.

She looks closely at the bag and as it comes out feels down the section that he pointed out...

Nothing...

Calls over her supervisor and it goes through the machine again. Again, there’s a black ruler like shape. Supervisor checks bag - bends it and pulls lining etc. Back into the machine but this time nothing!?

Three more times they put the bag through - three more times nothing.

Supervisor scratches head. Says he’s no idea what the hell it was and loads stuff into my bag and hands it to me saying “well, if you do have an imaginary knife, can you not do imaginary damage to anyone please” and waved me through.

To this day I have no idea what the shadow was they saw but now use a different bag just in case!

 

[Dis703]

A pair of 3-4 pound hand weights. I had been on a great exercise routine and didn't want to stop over vacation so I tossed them in my carry on never imagining there would be an issue with them. Apparently they were a potential weapon and had to be tossed.

 

[leebee]

Just pondering leebee's dance shoe tale. It dawns on me that according to the checkpoint protocol pax should not touch any item until it was cleared. Good thing her DD was one of the good guys . . .

WOW! I started reading this thread without noticing the date- imagine my surprise when I read my own post!

I think we were lucky when DD had the pointe shoe issue (details on pg. 5) in that we were at our home airport, in a small town. She was just frantic thinking about her shoes being confiscated and/or cut apart as well as missing her audition. I think the TSA was one of the "realistic" guys and decided to give her a break- especially as she could clearly prove that these were, indeed, just pointe shoes. It's annoying, though: Carry on and risk losing them, or pay to check them in a suitcase and risk losing them in the baggage system. She finally started checking a suitcase with pointe stuff in it and taking her dance bag with all the rest of her stuff as a carryon.

 

[DisNerdSocal]

I know this is an older thread but wanted to share this... my son is a cellist and had his rosin taken from our luggage during our most recent trip April 2019. Not quite sure what the TSA thought it was or what they thought we'd do with it, but that's a new one for me!

 

[Dis703]

A small set of hand weights. I had been on a good workout routine and didn't want to skip while on vacation. I was worried about the weight of my checked bags so I tossed them into carry on. They were only maybe 4 pounds but they insisted they could be used as a weapon. Which for that matter I explained I could use my suitcase and do just as much damage, but they wouldn't budge. Even told me I was going on vacation I shouldn't be worried about exercising, I was in great shape and didn't need them, blah blah blah. At the very least they were nice about it, but that one caught me by surprise.