TSA screening is already stressful enough—emptying pockets, pulling items from bags, you name it.
On top of that, you have to deal with TSA officers, who may or may not be super pleasant when they’re interacting with the general public (although I have to admit that when I was traveling during my “JetBlue junkets” [a.k.a. JetBlue’s 25 for 25 challenge], I found nearly all TSA workers to be professional, some were genuinely pleasant, and a handful were even kind, jovial, etc. And some of that was even during the last government shutdown!).
All that being said, you would think that TSA officers would know what’s allowed to be in the bags you intend to bring on the plane, yes? Apparently, just like encountering officers who are particularly nice or particularly grumpy, that’s not always the case.
Which is exactly what happened to Charissa Enget when she was flying out of MCO (I could tell from the carpeting, LOL) late last year and encountered a TSA officer who didn’t seem to know the difference between a weapon…and a pickleball paddle. She took to TikTok to share the amusing incident.
She starts the video by saying, “TSA pulled my bag and the guy pulled this out of it. He was like, ‘what is this?’ And I was like ‘it’s a pickleball paddle’.”
What a pickleball paddle actually looks like
These are some examples of pickleball paddles:
They typically measure roughly 15-17″ tall and 7-8.25″ wide, with a weight of 6 to 14 ounces. They can be made from a variety of materials.
PC: thirdshopdrop
Pickleball has become VERY popular in the past few years, but apparently the TSA officer that Enget encountered wasn’t familiar with the game. So he said, “I just don’t know if you can take this through, if it would be used as a weapon or not”.
Enget tried to diffuse the awkward encounter with some humor and replied, “it could be used as a weapon of mass destruction on the pickleball court!”
Said TSA officer wasn’t impressed and called over his colleague for a second opinion.
TSA officer #2 was much more understanding, and Enget said, “The other TSA agent was a pickleball [player]. He’s like bro ‘you’ve never heard of a pickleball. It’s the fastest growing sport in America’.”
Fortunately, the paddle was eventually cleared for travel. Enget added: “Anyway, they let me through. But I’ve never had my pickleball paddle be an issue before.”
Here’s the video:
@lifeofcharissae I was NOT leaving without my pickleball paddle tho it was more expensive than the Spirit flight 😂 the other TSA agent came thru for me 😤 #travel #pickleball #pickleballtiktok #pickleballaddict #solotravel
The responses
Unsurprisingly, TikTok viewers had thoughts—and most of them were at the TSA officer’s expense.
From Kendra:
My daughter was questioned about her Harry Potter wand…and the tsa agent thought it could be a weapon and the other agent had said “only if she is going to put a curse on you”
From Paracosm:
If that could be considered a weapon he’s gonna have a real issue with hard cover books.
From Chi:
A metal water bottle is more of a weapon than a pickleball paddle 😂
Are pickleball paddles OK to be brought on a plane?
Yep, pickleball paddles are explicitly allowed through TSA. As per their “What Can I Bring?” list.:
Pickleball may be the fastest-growing sport in America — but apparently not everyone has gotten the memo yet.
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