Guns On Private Aircraft and Boats

[Texas Star]

If someone owns a private plane or rents one, can he carry a gun on it?

This is assuming that he could have the gun on the ground, and isn't flying into some restrictive state like New York.

Other reasons for having a gun aside, I should think that some will want a gun when flying over remote areas where the plane might crash. Survival arm...

What about boats? I know that those ships the pirates attack in the Middle East can't have guns, and I deeply disrespec the owners for tht. Their employees lives become pawn in a ransom game.

But what about private craft, especially those in US waters? I've read that the Coast Guard is very aggressive about boarding private vessels for random searches. What are they looking for, other than drugs? Are guns legal? With piracy so common, it seems imprudent to go to sea unarmed. And we discussed guns being used against sharks in another thread.

Suppose a US-registered boat goes beyond US territory, in the Caribbean?

T-Star

 

[M29since14]

30-40 years ago, a lot of private pilots I was around carried handguns in their map cases. My Dad was a recreational pilot. We flew all around the midwest, sometimes on business, but generally just for sport. Dad never messed around with a gun, but he usually had me along. I was a young fellow and always had the beloved Model 29 with me. He probably thought I was a little odd - would sometimes refer to me as "Dillinger," whenever his friends took note of the revolver, but really, it was not at all uncommon.

These days, I am sure there are 300,000 federal regulations against a private pilot doing anything in his aircraft except breathing (and maybe that too, if not done according to their standards). Anyway, if going in and out of a weed patch, you would probably be OK. No one would know. If flying into any sort of government owned/operated facility, I wouldn't take a chance without doing a lot of research. The AOPA might be able to give some guidance if you want to look into it.

The only thing I can think of that the government seems to hate almost as much as shooters is "50-hour pilots."

 

[Frank237]

My neighbor flys his Gulfstream II from So Cal up to his Ranch here in MT and carries guns back and forth probably half the time. He lands in Gt Falls, an Intl Airport w/Border Patrol and Customs Agents....and has had zero issues.

Then again...Montana is pretty laid back when it comes to firearms.

FN in MT

 

[bk43]

There was a time, some 15 or so years ago, when the prefered method of getting drugs into the country was by boat into Florida and it's still used some today. Even fishing boats are vulnerable as some, especially like those from the kingfishing fleet, are little rockets. Boats around here have just disappeared, crew and all. Drug runners board the boat, kill the crew, and then make a run or two before scuttling the boat. Therefore, as you might suspect, most offshore boaters are armed around here.

The law is pretty simple. In international waters there really is no law. In US waters here, getting to meet the coast guard up close and personal is often from trespassing into prohibited waters around Kennedy Space Center. The coasties will ask where any guns are and that you stay away from them but that's usually about it. Florida FWC folks don't care much about people being armed when hunting(duh) or fishing as state law almost encourages it.

Bob

 

[canoeguy]

I always carry a firearm of some sort with me while sailing and canoeing, the only problems arise when landing on unfriendly shores like New Jersey. Some foreign countrys allow you to possess firearms while visiting, others don't. The only problems I have heard in countries other than the U.S. are when sailors fail to declare weapons aboard, then are found later in an inspection.

I was boarded by the Drug Enforcement Agency once while sailing in the Florida Keys, the first thing they asked was if I had any weapons aboard. I told them I did, they looked at them first, a revolver and Mauser rifle, recorded the serial numbers and that was it. They did a cursury search, presumably for bales of marijuana as they didn't look hard, then left.

As for small airplanes, if I owned a light aircraft I wouldn't fly without at least a handgun aboard. I worked at a small airfield in Chesapeake, Va. for a while, and we had an incident where a drunk tried to steal a Piper Arrow from a pilot on the ramp. He was tieng down his plane, and this guy approached him armed with a pair of scissors, demanding the key to the plane. The pilot threw the key to the plane into the grass, and avoided the drunk as he drunkenly chased him around the plane. A mob of pilots, mechanics and airport hanger ons formed and chased the guy into the parking lot and down the road, until he was rescued by the Chesapeake Police. No one at the field had a handgun, even me as my employer frowned upon guns at work!

I think there used to be a law in Alaska that all pilots had to carry a rifle, sleeping bag and food aboard for survival situations. Don't know if that is the case now...

 

[rjroberts]

It helps that in Florida one can carry in a vehicle without a permit, so that applies to boats. In most states, the law for land vehicles applies to boats. I suppose a problem can occur when going to a state with more restrictive laws, though the safe-passage act requiring that the gun be kept locked and unloaded should protect a person. (Not in all cases, though as New York has been known to act contrary to the law in that respect and "see what you can do about it.")

In aircraft, I don't know the laws other than the fact that the FAA/Homeland Security is going to be instituting a whole bunch of new regulations for private aircraft.

In the Caribbean, it depends on country. The Bahamian law the last time I was there was that you could have a weapon on board but that it had to be declared to Customs upon arrival and the ammunition counted and declared, and it had to stay on the boat. Ammunition could be counted on departure; obviously they wanted to be sure the guns left, too.

 

[Capt Steve]

As long as the gun is legal/legally owned and you admit to having it when boarded by the Coast Guard you have no problem. The first thing they ask when boarding is "Are there any drugs or weapons aboard?" Operating out of San Diego for many years I always had at least my 639 stainless close at hand. The problem there is that you better not get caught with a gun in Mexican waters so when heading south I would always leave it behind. As noted you can carry in international waters without a problem but put into any port and the rules can change dramatically.

 

[feralmerril]

I hope to be getting back into flying soon after being away from it for many years. As already said, first there are so many regulations I dont know if a bunch of philidelphia lawyers could keep up with them! If you had FAA check pilots and agency lawyers in the plane watching you, I doubt it would be possible to make a flight without breaking a couple rules! However, except on ramp checks (seldom done) its pretty hard to pull you over for speeding or whatever. If we are talking about the average recreation pilot who is flying a single engine puddle jumper I doubt there is any law against it. However if you are some rich guy like travolta flying internationly, in and out of huge airports it probley is another story. In alaska they have the highest percentage of private pilots. I would guess virtualy every plane has a survival gun in it.
Another war story here. I was flying in nevada in the mid 70s. I seen a C-45 in a remote desert on the ground busted up. I instantly assumed it a drug runner. (I was proved right). I buzzed the area and saw no activity in the surrounding area and decided to land and check it out. The place he tried to land at was called hart mine and is on the flight map between searchlight nevada and essex california. It really wasnt much more than a desert dirt road. There had been a lot of rain and it washed a gully across the first part of the strip. That shorted the useable length and the pilot ran out of length and had to purposely ground loop it at the end. He swung the plane around at speed, knocking down a jousha tree just in front of the emperage, breaking the fueslage like a broken wrist.
I had read most of that from the air while buzzing the area. I landed okay as I had a much smaller plane. ( A old piper tri-pacer ).
Anyway I was happy to have a revolver in my plane. Back then, I carried a 27-2 8 3/8" in the plane. Nobody was in the plane or around it. I got in the plane, copyied the registration. For sure it was a drug runner, all seats except pilot seats had been removed to haul. I also had found truck tracks up to the plane. I got out of there and radioed by CB some friends in searchlight where I had just left, the situation. The next day they had a confrontation with the crew when they went to check out the plane. Long story short, I worked with the FAA and a Los Vegas detective trying to salvage the plane, really didnt get much out of the deal except a nice adventure and another war story.

 

[Landpimp]

we were pulled over out in the sound last year when fishing by a Coast Guard fast boat(the one with the machine gun on the bow) guess my buddy fit the discription of someone that did something(they never told us) but they came at us FAST

But we both has HK's on us, they had no issue with that(but did ask), never even asked to see them as they were visible(one on hip, one on dash) as they realized it was the wrong person.

only issue is when we used to go from WA to Canada by boat.....no guns

 

[GatorFarmer]

You can carry your gun on your own plane or on one that you chartered - with approval of the pilot/charter company. The actor Christian Slater got himself in trouble some years back for trying to board a plane with a handgun. He'd thought that he was booked on a chartered flight, but it was a regular commercial flight.

For a great many years, I'm not sure if it has changed, private pilots in Alaska were required to have a firearm on board for survival.

 

[USAF385]

I've come across a lake or two with a no firearms sign.

 

[2Loud4You]

For a great many years, I'm not sure if it has changed, private pilots in Alaska were required to have a firearm on board for survival.

I was about to say "I bet those Alaskan bush pilots have guns on them"

 

[Super Trucker]

While on a boat in Michigan waters you need to be really careful where you are at. Some waterways are shared with Canada and if you have a gun in Canada, your in a little trouble.
Same with Lake Michigan, it also boarders Illinois and Wisconsin and we all know those are not the friendliest states toward gun rights.

While in Michigan waters we tell the Coast Guard/Local LEO that there are X amount of guns on board and who is the permit holder, never had an issue about it. They generaly make sure the person driving isn't drunk and that there are life jackets for everybody on board. If you are not pissy with them it usually last 3 to 5 minutes.

 

[310Pilot]

I almost always carry at least one gun when I fly my plane. There are no FAA regulations against it, and there are a lot of reasons to carry one, including survival in case of a forced landing in remote country (and you can go from a big city airport to wilderness in 5 or 10 minutes in an airplane, at least in the West), to self-protection when you land at your destination.

 

[USAF385]

I almost always carry at least one gun when I fly my plane. There are no FAA regulations against it, and there are a lot of reasons to carry one, including survival in case of a forced landing in remote country (and you can go from a big city airport to wilderness in 5 or 10 minutes in an airplane, at least in the West), to self-protection when you land at your destination.

My uncle has a seaplane. I once went on a few week trip with him, my father and my brother. We spent a lot of time in remote areas. Great trip.. most amazing of my life. Anyway he had a 12 gauge and a .44 mag in the plane.

 

[lcdrdanr]

Living on the Colorado River we do most of our boating on a waterway that forms the border between Arizona and California, if you go up North you will be in Nevada. My chart marks the boundary of California but the San Bernardino (California) Sheriffs Department is tasked with law enforcement on the river without regard to dotted lines on a chart.

I'm never on the lake or the river without a firearm of some kind on the boat. Usually a .357 revolver in the cubbyhole beside my seat. Sometimes a shortened 12 gauge. Typically cased but loaded and available but out of sight and mind.

I've never been stopped nor ever asked anyone about the legality of it. I launch from and recover at a State Park and never brought the question up with anyone there, either.

I guess "Don't ask, Don't tell" works, huh ?

Dan R