Alaska Airlines question regarding ammo

[375 Ruger Fan]

A friend of mine is moving to Alaska to work as a fishing guide and try to get on with a hunting outfitter. He's done the fishing guide and commercial fishing for a couple years, so hoping to take it the next step. So he is boxing up a bunch of stuff and shipping up to friends.

You can't ship ammunition to Alaska, but supposedly you can take 50 pounds of ammo as checked baggage on Alaska Airlines. Has anyone done this?

 

[Randy F]

Whatever you do, don't set it by the door.

 

[Mekaniks]

I have never had 50 lbs...
But, I have had more than 11lbs in luggage and I have never had them weigh ammo or ask about the ammo weight...
They do want to confirm that it is all in secure packaging (not loose) but never total quantity....

 

[James.Grage]

Tape the ammo boxes both ends so that they will not open.

Place the ammo in a bag that you intend to check. make sure that the bag is packed so that items do not bounce around in it causing the boxes of ammo to bust open.

 

[gbflyer]

Yes. Just put it in checked baggage in factory style individual ammo boxes. No issue

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

I think Plan A is to load the ammo into a military surplus ammo can. I spray painted it gray to make it look more like a tool box. Will have a lock on it too.

 

[Namagiqa]

Mekaniks' response is a good one. And there are ways to ship ammo to Alaska via freight forwarding. Carlisle and Lynden will ship to Alaska from various ports in the Lower 48 based upon weight and it will go on a ship or truck. Not really worth it for a few boxes but if you wanted to buy ammo by the pallet, for example, you could use them.

In general, Alaska is a pretty good airline for handling firearms and ammunition.

 

[David AK 53]

I fly from and to Alaska 2 or 3 times a year with firearms and ammunition. The 50 pounds is the weight of the bag and all contents. Read the line above the chart. Weight of ammunition is limited to 11 pounds.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

The line I think you are referring to states the 11 lb limit is for flights with numbers 3300-3499. For flights with a number lower than 3400, the limit is 50 lbs according to the chart. At least that’s how I read it.

A potential problem I can see is you are checking in somewhere in the lower 48, at an American Airlines check in, the flight is a codeshare for Alaska Airlines and the American agent doesn’t have a clue.

 

[Mekaniks]

The line I think you are referring to states the 11 lb limit is for flights with numbers 3300-3499. For flights with a number lower than 3400, the limit is 50 lbs according to the chart. At least that’s how I read it.

A potential problem I can see is you are checking in somewhere in the lower 48, at an American Airlines check in, the flight is a codeshare for Alaska Airlines and the American agent doesn’t have a clue.

Yes sir, I believe that you are correct

 

[gearguywb]

A friend of mine is moving to Alaska to work as a fishing guide and try to get on with a hunting outfitter. He's done the fishing guide and commercial fishing for a couple years, so hoping to take it the next step. So he is boxing up a bunch of stuff and shipping up to friends.

You can't ship ammunition to Alaska, but supposedly you can take 50 pounds of ammo as checked baggage on Alaska Airlines. Has anyone done this?


View attachment 584622

11 lbs of ammo. Federal rule on any airlines

 

[Mekaniks]

11 lbs of ammo. Federal rule on any airlines

Have you ever seen an airline remove ammo from checked luggage and weigh it separately on a domestic US flight???

 

[gearguywb]

I have not. I actually had an unpleasant experience years ago when I took about 50lbs of ammo to the Steel Challenge . Everything worked out in the end.

Today air travel is a bit tougher.

Nowadays if I need large volumes of ammo I ship it to a party at location, or to myself at a hotel. Easy to ship ammo via UPS

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Nowadays if I need large volumes of ammo I ship it to a party at location, or to myself at a hotel. Easy to ship ammo via UPS

ᑕ❶ᑐ How to Ship Ammo - Shipping Firearms via FreightRun

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Shipping Ammo UPS​

When shipping ammunition via UPS the process is relatively simple. Here is how it will go:

• You must go to a shipping center and not a typical UPS store. The shipping center will check your shipment in. These places are called UPS Customer Centers and will be found inside the facility. You can also use a UPS Scheduled Pickup Account if you have one.
• Your shipment must weigh less than 66 pounds.
• The shipment can only be sent via UPS Ground.
• You must place a specific shipping label on the outside of your package that identifies what is inside. The label should read ORM-D and have a valid date.
• You cannot ship ammo internationally.

Shipping Ammunition to Alaska and Hawaii​

Because ammo is considered a hazardous material, it cannot be sent via air freight in order to prevent a potential ammunition ship explosion.

For shipping firearms or ammo to Alaska, this limits the options to shipping by boat, or by long-run truck.

For shipping to Hawaii, your only option of course is to ship firearms or ammunition by boat.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

It appears Alaska Airlines lets you check rifles with ammo in the rifle case. Given this option, putting two rifles into a typical rifle case (Pelican, SKB, etc) would be under 50 lbs. So adding a few boxes of ammo to the rifle case and bringing it up to 50 lbs seems to be an option.

Other boxes of ammo can be placed into other checked bags and just have to be mindful of the 50 lb total limit.

https://www.alaskaair.com/content/travel-info/baggage/special-baggage/transporting-firearms