Airplane security no-nos: Knives, bullets and hammers top CATSA list

Knives, bullets, hammers, crowbars.

If you'rewondering what these items have in common, you might be surprised to learn they'reall things passengers have attempted to get through airport security in a carry-on bag.

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"Swiss army knives, paring knives, multi-tool kniveswe see a ton of them every day," MathieuLarocque, a spokesman for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA), said at Calgary International Airport on Monday.

Larocque says these kinds of infractions are often innocent mistakes, because manytravellers simply don't know an item is prohibited or forget that it was in their bag,

Still, with the Calgary airport processing more than 15,000 travellers every day, Larocque said those mistakes quickly add up and slow down the security screening process for everyone.

"One of the most common mistakes that passengers will make is with liquids, aerosols and gel restrictions," Larocque said.

"Passengers will forget a large bottle of shampoo, or water, or maple syrup in their carry-on baggage."

Each infraction grinds the line to a halt.

"It is not a huge percentage of travellers but every time you see an item that is not permitted in a carry-on bag, it means you have to stop the line to search the bag, remove the item and then offer the passenger the options."

Those options include leaving the security area and giving the banned item to a friend or popping it in your car, mailing it to yourself, putting it in a checked bag or tossing it in the garbage if you don't have time to exercise the other options.

Canadian airports post what's acceptable and what's not and CATSA has the complete list online.

Larocque saidsometimes it's people who don't fly very oftenwho forget the rules but for everyone's safety, they must still be applied.