Carrying a Bowie knife on a flight is obviously something which will involve several complications. Even before the overall tightening of security at airports in recent years, it would have been almost certain that any airline would have prohibited an individual from entering a plane with such a knife, and, likely, they would have been in some trouble for having tried at all.

A Bowie knife cannot be carried in any luggage that is brought on board the plane. This is to prevent anyone from accessing a weapon while the plane is in the air. The pre-boarding inspection will include the x-raying of luggage and there’s no way that this x-ray will miss a Bowie’s blade. Trying to carry a knife on the plane can create a great deal of trouble for anyone caught doing it. There is a way that these knives can be carried onboard, however, on most major carriers.

The Bowie knife will have to be sheathed. An open blade is not allowed in the luggage. This is common sense, anyway, as an open blade would obviously damage the items around it if the luggage were handled roughly. The knife will also have to be securely packed in a bag, not transported loosely. If these requirements prove to be burdensome, one can always ship their knife and get it at their destination.

In the luggage, the knife must be sheathed securely. This is usually no problem where Bowie knives are concerned as they are sheath knives by design. It’s a good idea to wrap or box the knife within the luggage, as well. Even though a sheath protects the blade, the hand guard and handle still might snag on clothing or other items and cause damage or be damaged. Make sure the knife cannot slide out of the sheath, in any regard, and count on the luggage being handled a bit roughly from time to time by baggage handlers.

Bowie knives are illegal in some places, so make sure to check ahead before shipping them anywhere. If there are no problems, shipping is a good and inexpensive alternative to taking luggage on an airplane. One simply ground ships their knife ahead of them and picks it up at the destination. For those who don’t want to have any trouble carrying a weapon, this is oftentimes far preferable. These knives cost very little to ship.

Dylan Sabot is the owner of an online bowie knives store featuring hunting knives.