Thread: Flying Domestic with a rifle and ammo

I'll be heading to my brothers in the north island at the end of the month and I'd like to take my rifle and ammo, had anyone had any experience with domestic travel in regards to taking your rifles? Any advice on who to go through and who not to go through?
Any help will be greatly appreciated!

Cheers

Tian


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https://nzgac.org.nz/sites/default/f...015%5b1%5d.pdf
@TianBotha

Originally Posted by Ryan

https://nzgac.org.nz/sites/default/f...015%5b1%5d.pdf
@TianBotha

Awesome thanks, any chance you know if I can put the ammo in my pelican case with my rifle? Or do they have to be 2 seperate cases? Also do you know the rough cost they charge?


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I'm sorry boet, I've absolutely no idea - have never flown with firearms.

Originally Posted by Ryan

I'm sorry boet, I've absolutely no idea - have never flown with firearms.

Damn all good, hopefullly someone else can shed some light! Have a good one boet


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Ammo needs to be separate from rifle in checked baggage. Rifle in a locked case. Ring the airline and get the info from them. Be aware some of them don't know what they are talking about. I had a checkin person insist ammo had to be in original factory packaging. It ended up costing them a shit load of money sending a taxi an hour to my house to get my rifle and put it on a later flight.

Originally Posted by stug

Ammo needs to be separate from rifle in checked baggage. Rifle in a locked case. Ring the airline and get the info from them. Be aware some of them don't know what they are talking about. I had a checkin person insist ammo had to be in original factory packaging. It ended up costing them a shit load of money sending a taxi an hour to my house to get my rifle and put it on a later flight.

Great thanks, so I've heard, that's why i started the thread as I've heard of people calling the airlines and getting the wrong information passed on, just don't want to get there and they for some reason or another don't take my rifle
Cheers Stug


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On AirNZ, gun in a locked case, bolt out & in your checked in bag along with your ammo in a ammo box/original packet. When you check in go find a staff member & tell them your have a rifle to check in, they will tag it etc & give you a copy of the special tag, they put it through oversize & you go to baggage claim at the other end, hand your tag copy over, get rifle back, job done.

Eh... just courier it to yourself at the other end?

Originally Posted by stug

Ammo needs to be separate from rifle in checked baggage. Rifle in a locked case. Ring the airline and get the info from them. Be aware some of them don't know what they are talking about. I had a checkin person insist ammo had to be in original factory packaging. It ended up costing them a shit load of money sending a taxi an hour to my house to get my rifle and put it on a later flight.

Really interested in this original factory packaging thing stug as I fly a lot with firearms and have had a couple of questionable encounters. the problem currently is that security seems to be entering every bag I check in to inspect ammo and batteries - after you have checked it in and have gone through to the departure gates.
Luckily on a return trip I had a handful of rounds removed because they were not in original packaging (with a note left in the bag to say so) and another instance where I intentionally put some insulation tape on the 'original' pack which was in reality for reloaded rounds and the tape had been cut at one end indicating inspection.
This is an issue for anyone that reloads and does anyone know our if there is a practical and workable way to navigate this? What did you do in your instance?

also seems to be a different opinion between individuals and different airports about whether you need a signed firearm tag on the bag holding the ammo. I've noticed most don't these days but some still insisting
@TianBotha the rifle case constitutes a bag so you may need to buy an extra bag for your flight. other than the above I find the whole thing very easy and only fly air nz these days

I flew from north to south last year and phoned air nz to get the run down. So they tell me rifle in locked case bolt out and ammo in checked bag separate and no more than 5kg so I thought easy.
Traveled down ok then on the return checked rifle in and just before boarding got a call return to check in.
They got me to place a lock on my bag as I had ammo in there.
Ok took a lock off my gun case and locked it as it had 2 locks.
Then another call as I'm about to board you have a bag of ammo in your case as well as ammo in a hard case and this is not allowed please remove it and we will distroy it.
About now I'm getting pissed off so out comes the ammo that's not in a plastic hard cases of which they then take away and dump. And the worst of it is I phoned Auckland Air NZ twice to check I was doing the Wright thing.
So put your ammo in a plastic hard container.

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Domestic baggage never used to be X rayed, I believe at the main airports they randomly do now, @LOC your checked bag with the ammo in it doesn't need the firearms tag but some staff don't realise this, last time I traveled with one I didn't have one on the way out but they insisted in Auckland on the way back, in the end it doesn't really matter & keeps your gear together. Also Occassionaly the loaders don't see the tag & put your bag out on the general bag claim belt.

So would you guys just recommend that I give AirNZ a call, have a talk to them and then just turn up on the day and check the rifle in in my pelican and then put the bolt and ammo in my standard checked baggage too?


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Originally Posted by 25/08IMP

I flew from north to south last year and phoned air nz to get the run down. So they tell me rifle in locked case bolt out and ammo in checked bag separate and no more than 5kg so I thought easy.
Traveled down ok then on the return checked rifle in and just before boarding got a call return to check in.
They got me to place a lock on my bag as I had ammo in there.
Ok took a lock off my gun case and locked it as it had 2 locks.
Then another call as I'm about to board you have a bag of ammo in your case as well as ammo in a hard case and this is not allowed please remove it and we will distroy it.
About now I'm getting pissed off so out comes the ammo that's not in a plastic hard cases of which they then take away and dump. And the worst of it is I phoned Auckland Air NZ twice to check I was doing the Wright thing.
So put your ammo in a plastic hard container.

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I'm flying with AirNZ and all my ammo is in little 20 round cardboard boxes that they came in, the last thing I want is for them to take it off me and dump it! Could I just take a snap lock container and put all the ammo in their original packaging into the snap lock containers?


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Originally Posted by TianBotha

So would you guys just recommend that I give AirNZ a call, have a talk to them and then just turn up on the day and check the rifle in in my pelican and then put the bolt and ammo in my standard checked baggage too?


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Just turn up, Leave it in the original packets, get there a bit earlier to allow time to check it all in.