Jan. 03--Orlando International Airport ended 2013 with more gun arrests than any other Florida airport, according to the federal Transportation Security Administration.
The year's 47thand final arrest happened on New Year's Eve at 1:30 p.m. when Brad Johnson, 38, of Orlando, tried to board a flight to Atlanta with a loaded .45-caliber pistol that was found in his carry-on luggage, a police report stated.
"Arrestee did not realize he left the handgun in bag," the report stated.
Johnson and most of the armed passengers arrested last year at OIA had state permits to carry concealed weapons. But those permits do not allow them to carry weapons aboard commercial aircraft, records show.
OIA officials had hoped to post new no-gun signs outside the terminal by New Year's Day to reduce the number of weapons being confiscated from travelers.
The holidays and another signage project prevented that from happening, according to Greater Orlando Aviation Authority Spokeswoman Carolyn Fennell. She also said that OIA handles more domestic flight passengers than any other Florida airport, which may have contributed to more guns being seized there.
As the state's second busiest airport after Miami, Orlando moved 35 million passengers in 2012.
Fort Lauderdale, third busiest with 23.5 million passengers, had 45 guns seized last year. Gun seizures at the state's other major airports included 36 at Tampa, 30 at Jacksonville, 24 at Miami and 11 at Palm Beach, records show.
Johnson, who was charged with carrying a firearm in a place prohibited by law, was released from the Orange County Jail after posting a $250 bail. While many of these misdemeanor cases are dismissed or resolved with pre-trial diversion, arrestees still face federal fines up to $11,000.
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