Airport screeners with the Transportation Security Administration checked a lot of people last year (more than 600 million), and confiscated both the dangerous and the bizarre from passengers.

Among the oddities taken away were a chastity belt, eels, dead venomous snakes, and more than one samurai sword.

Potentially dangerous confiscations included grenades, rocket launchers, spear guns, stun guns, mortar and bazooka rounds, warheads, a chainsaw, a pen gun, a machete, a knife mounted on a walker, and jingle bell shotgun shells.

Speaking of firearms, there were plenty of those too that passengers tried to take with them on their flights. More than 1,500 guns were discovered in carry-on bags, and nearly 80% of them were loaded.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

To Learn More:

A Look at the Dangerous, Scary, and Downright Unusual Items our Officers Found in 2012 (by Bob Burns, TSA Blog)

The 21 Craziest Things the TSA Found In Travelers' Luggage This Year (by Alex Davies, Business Insider)

TSA Confiscates an Average of more than 3 Loaded Guns a Day at Airports (by Matt Bewig, AllGov)

TSA Defends Confiscating Professor’s Cupcake (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)