BA via Heathrow with guns

I am sitting in the lounge currently enjoying a cold beer waiting to board for Johannesburg. For all of the people wonder or thinking about flying BA they DO charge the 125 pound fee for both your rifle case and ammo case also your ammo case can not fly in your checked luggage. It will end up costing $340 usd each way. If you want to leave the airport on a long layover you will need what is called a UK ETA. It is very easy to do with tha ap and it cost a few dollars. I dont remeber off the top of my head. Leaving the airport was easy and the train will get you to Paddingtin station pretty quick. Good luck to everyone headed over.

BA has no problem charging a fee for carrying your firearm. Thanks for the update.

BRICKBURN said:

BA has no problem charging a fee for carrying your firearm. Thanks for the update.

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I knew they charged for the firearms but the lady at the ticket counter said that they charge for both now.

They do not charge for both when flying from the UK to SA.

Look at their terms and conditions, see the following link:


I have flown numerous times with BA to Jo’burg and have only been charged £125 each way. The last time was March this year.

BA Charges a fee for your gun case and a fee for your ammo, £125 each, one way, this is for any flight even from London to Europe routes.

I do a few trips a year within Europe from the UK, have given up taking rifles with BA, UK to Europe is getting difficult now to take your own rifles. For Africa, I'll only fly out of the US and end up on the Atlanta Joberg route with Delta.

You can also fly Virgin / Delta from LHR to JNB. BA would be my last choice!

BA (direct flight) do not charge for rifle and ammo on route from UK to Jo’Burg as per the link I posted earlier.

You should only be charged for the rifle.

JamieM said:

BA (direct flight) do not charge for rifle and ammo on route from UK to Jo’Burg as per the link I posted earlier.

You should only be charged for the rifle.

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Here is their wording. Note the "Each bag" is charged for. Rifle and ammo cannot be in one bag together hence you have to pay the £125 twice, each way. Thats about US$680 in total for a round trip.

Where we do fly BA, we arrange for ammo to be available at the other end and just pay for one gun case. If possible we pack 2 guns in one gun case to share the fee. Checking in at LHR takes for ever for the "special" security guy to show up and take your guns, this happens no matter which airline you fly.

Following, as I am flying BA in July.
I know you can’t have ammo in your gun case while flying internally in SA, but what about flying to SA?

Good to hear they’ll accept guns. I was told to avoid them as they wouldn’t. I do t really care about a couple hundred buck charge for the baggage if the routing is good. It’s a pittance on the cost of a safari.

UpNorthMI said:

Here is their wording. Note the "Each bag" is charged for. Rifle and ammo cannot be in one bag together hence you have to pay the £125 twice, each way. Thats about US$680 in total for a round trip.

Where we do fly BA, we arrange for ammo to be available at the other end and just pay for one gun case. If possible we pack 2 guns in one gun case to share the fee. Checking in at LHR takes for ever for the "special" security guy to show up and take your guns, this happens no matter which airline you fly.

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Read a little further down in “how to pack your firearms and ammunition” and you will see the following extract:

• If you're travelling to/from South Africa, Italy, or from Romania, check in your firearms and ammunition in individual locked cases, separate from any checked bag with your personal belongings. In this instance, you will not be charged an extra baggage fee for the separate ammunition case if you exceed your free baggage allowance.

I have flown some 10 times with BA to SA and have only been charged for the rifle case.

They are now charging per case. Ammo and rifles

Bigry said:

They are now charging per case. Ammo and rifles

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If you were charged, then it was done incorrectly.

Their carriage terms clearly state they don’t.

I flew in March and was only charge for a rifle.

A friend flew out in April and was also only charged for a rifle.

As I have said, read their terms, print out the section next time and refer the check-in person to the correct point within their terms of carriage. Most of the check-in people do not know the correct terms of carriage and often need educating.

The business class check-in are a little more switched BTW.

Flying business or 1st class enables you to go through the VIP channel when passing through the SA border control which puts ahead at the SAP office.

Enjoy your next trip!

On BA, I have only paid for the firearm case and not the ammo case. I would ask for a refund of the overcharge.

TnKen said:

Following, as I am flying BA in July.
I know you can’t have ammo in your gun case while flying internally in SA, but what about flying to SA?

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That’s a Big No. Firearm and ammunition must be packed separately. At least with every airline I’ve flown with. 6 at least.

Directly from their website

And scroll a little further down and read “how to pack your firearms and ammunition” and you will see the following extract:

• If you're travelling to/from South Africa, Italy, or from Romania, check in your firearms and ammunition in individual locked cases, separate from any checked bag with your personal belongings. In this instance, you will not be charged an extra baggage fee for the separate ammunition case if you exceed your free baggage allowance.

Please see below the full extract. The extract above is the third point in “how to pack your firearms and ammunition” which is the next subsection below “Limits and Charges” where your extract comes from:

The following are prohibited for carriage on either your person or in your hand baggage:

Guns, firearms and other devices that discharge projectiles and devices capable, or appearing capable, of being used to cause serious injury by discharging a projectile, including:

• Firearms of all types, such as pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns
• Toy guns, replicas and imitation firearms capable of being mistaken for real weapons
• Component parts of firearms, excluding telescopic sights
• Compressed air and CO2 guns, such as pistols, pellet guns, rifles and ball bearing guns
• Signal flare pistols and starter pistols
• Bows, cross bows and arrows
• Harpoon guns and spear guns
• Slingshots and catapults

You can travel with the following types of firearms as checked baggage under very specific conditions:

• Firearms of all types, such as pistols, revolvers, rifles and shotguns
• Replicas and imitation firearms capable of being mistaken for real weapons
• Component parts of firearms, excluding telescopic sights & magazines
• Compressed air and CO2 guns, such as pistols, pellet guns, rifles and ball-bearing guns
• Signal flare pistols and starter pistols

These items may only be carried in your checked baggage and require notification and approval from British Airways in advance. You must contact us at least 72 hours before you fly to request approval and to comply with any government embargoes and any government or airport restrictions. If you don’t contact us, your equipment won’t be allowed onboard.

You will need to provide the appropriate licences and documentation for your firearms and ammunition, e.g. export/import licences and authorisation from local and national authorities.

If you are travelling to Brazil, only firearms being used for shooting competitions can be taken into the country. Firearms for hunting are not permitted. Passengers must apply for a permit to import the firearm at least 30 days before their travel date.

The following items are not classified as firearms or ammunition and you can pack them in your checked baggage without having to notify us:

• Laser pistols
• Toy guns
• Bows, cross bows and arrows
• Harpoon guns and spear guns
• Slingshots and catapults

Notify us before you fly

You must contact us at least 72 hours before your flight to request approval; if you fail to notify us, you will not be able to travel with your equipment.

You’ll need to provide the following information:

• The airports that you are flying from and to
• The number of firearms you wish to transport
• The type (handgun, rifle, shotgun)
• The make/model and calibre
• The quantity (in weight) and calibre of ammunition

Travelling on other airlines

If you are planning to make a booking on ba.com that includes a flight operated by another airline, please contact us before booking to check if the other airline is able to carry your firearm.

Limits and charges

• Some airports are restricted on their permissions to handle specific types of firearm – contact us to check
• There is a limit of 5kg (11lb) of ammunition (cartridges for weapons) per person (IATA Division 1.4S; UN numbers 0012 and 0014). This is for that person’s own use only and excludes ammunition with explosive or incendiary projectiles.
• Each bag or case containing firearms or ammunition is subject to a £125 charge each way, payable at check-in, plus applicable local service fees to cover the cost of our specialist firearms and ammunition handling partner.
• If you take more or heavier bags than your checked baggage allowance, you will need to pay an extra charge.

How to pack your firearms and ammunition

• Pack your firearms and ammunition together in an appropriate carriage case, or if this is not possible, securely inside your checked bag with your personal belongings (except to/from South Africa and Italy, and from Romania and Croatia).
• Be aware that any bag packed with personal items as well as your firearm and/or ammunition must not contain liquids in containers over 100ml or other items prohibited in hand baggage, as it has to go through the hand baggage security checks.
• If you're travelling to/from South Africa, Italy, or from Romania, check in your firearms and ammunition in individual locked cases, separate from any checked bag with your personal belongings. In this instance, you will not be charged an extra baggage fee for the separate ammunition case if you exceed your free baggage allowance.
• When travelling from Croatia, firearms must be packed in a locked case, separate from ammunition and personal items that can be packed together in another locked case. In this instance, you will not be charged an extra bag fee for one of these cases if you go over your free checked baggage allowance. You will still need to pay the required firearm/ammunition fee for each case containing a firearm or ammunition and extra bag charges for any further bags that exceed your free checked bag allowance.
• If you're travelling to/from the US, visit the TSA website for full details on transporting firearms and ammunition.
• You cannot combine ammunition allowances for more than one person into one or more bags.
• Ammunition needs to be in either its original packaging or a suitable container that prevents movement between shells or cartridges (loose ammunition is not permitted).
• Make sure that firearms are unloaded and each firearm is accompanied by the appropriate certificate.
• Do not use 'explosives' labels on bags with ammunition.

Arrive earlier for check-in

You must arrive at a check-in desk at least two hours before your flight to allow sufficient time to process the paperwork prior to clearing security. If you're travelling with 10 or more firearms or boxes of ammunition, you must allow at least three hours.

You must declare that you are travelling with firearms and/or ammunition at the check-in desk.

Connecting between different terminals at an airport

If you are connecting between different terminals at a UK airport, please allow at least three hours between flights.

Connecting between different airports

British Airways does not offer a connecting service for travelling with firearms between UK airports.

If you're connecting between different UK airports, you must ensure that you have the appropriate licences/permissions to be in possession of a firearm in the UK and you must make your own arrangements for the transfer of your firearms to your connecting flight. Please allow more than the recommended minimum connection time.

I thought the cost of the ammunition was covered within the £125 fee for the rifle case.

Edit I just found this on the website that confirms this:

• If you're travelling to/from South Africa, Italy, or from Romania, check in your firearms and ammunition in individual locked cases, separate from any checked bag with your personal belongings. In this instance, you will not be charged an extra baggage fee for the separate ammunition case if you exceed your free baggage allowance.