Heading to Montana in three weeks. Flying with my rifle for the first time. Ruger Mark II. I' m planning to keep the bolt in carry-on to convince agent it' s non-functional. Appreciate any heads-up on security procedures, problems, etc. Flying to Bozeman from Boston via Vegas. Thanks.

MassHntr, I would call the airline that you are useing and ask them what their requirements are. I am useing Frontier airlines and their procedure is the firearm has to be in a lockable case with no ammo storred with the gun. I have to declare the gun at the check in desk and open the case and fill out a form. I would think twice about having ANY part of a firearm in my carry on.

I just flew with firearms last month bringing a rifle and a pistol. I flew A.A. and they have to be in a locked case that does not include ammo. The gun case will opened and inspected while your there and scanned at least twice. The gun case I have came from Walley World a while back for I think $19.95 and is of heavey duty plastic consistantsy. Bobby

I don' t think they would let you carry on any gun parts at all. They wouldn' t even let me bring a bow limb. You could always lie and say it' s a spare part to your car, if they ask. I think it would be pretty obvious tho. But you don' t need to worry. The gun doesn' t need to be non-functional (or at least I don' t think it does). Plenty of people travel with guns. Make sure you call them up and find what case and locks are required and if you need anything. Keep it simple. No ammo, of course. Good luck.

I checked with Delta. They have a pretty reasonable policy. I' ve included a copy. To my surprise, ammo can be checked.

Shooting Equipment
One item of shooting equipment is accepted as part of a customer' s free checked baggage allowance. For each item listed, one item of shooting equipment is defined as one or a combination of the following:

Rifles
One rifle case containing:
two or fewer rifles (with or without scopes)
one shooting mat
one small pistol tool kit
noise suppressers
11 lbs. of ammunition
Cases containing more than two rifles will be assessed an excess baggage charge

Shotguns
two shotguns
two shotgun cases
11 lbs. Of ammunition
Cases containing more than two shotguns will be assessed an excess baggage charge

Pistols
One pistol case containing:
two pistols
pistol telescopes
noise suppressers
a small pistol tool case
11 lbs. Of ammunition
Cases containing more than two pistols will be assessed an excess baggage charge

When checking a firearm, you must:
declare to the Delta representative that they are checking a firearm (If a Security Checkpoint is prior to the Delta ticket counter, you must declare the existence of a firearm to security personnel.)
present firearm(s) unloaded and sign a " Firearms Unloaded" declaration
lock the firearm(s) in a hard-sided, crush-proof container and retain the key or combination
maintain entry permits in your possession for the country or countries of destination or transit
ensure small arms ammunition is packed in the manufacturer' s original package or securely packed in fiber, wood or metal boxes
Note: Firearms transported to the United Kingdom as checked baggage require a permit from the United Kingdom. The passenger must contact the United Kingdom for more information regarding this permit.

Ammunition in excess of 11 lbs. per passenger or that contains incendiary projectiles is prohibited.

I' d definitely leave the the bolt in the gun. There' s no problem checking a rifle as long as you declare it and it' s in a locked case. The Airlines don' t care if the gun is operative or not as long as you declare that there is no ammo in it. Most times when I fly with my rifles they don' t even open the case at the check in desk. they have me open just enough to slide in the firearms declaration tag.
You' d probably have a tough time explaining what the hunk of metal in your carry on was at the Security Checkpoint. I got stopped for a pair of finger nail clippers a while back. They gave me 2 options, go check them in and stand in the 45 min line again, or throw them away.......somebody got some free nail clippers!!