Taking frags on planes?

So my favorite trade show is coming up: Reef-A-Palooza...

I am flying down for this...

my question is... can I bring frags back on the plane? Is this legal? I am staying within the state of California if that matters...

matt

 

I don't know...when I flew out of LAX last year, it was a huge hassle for me to bring a small bamboo plant with me. Depends on which "I hate my lot in life" employee you run into at security. ;D

 

I read about an article about a guy who wrapped frags in wet paper towel put them in ziplocs and carried them on. Sorry I don't remember him talking about the legality of it.

 

I don't know about the legality, but one issue to consider is the X-Ray scanning for carry-on items. Would that be safe for the corals?

 

Well...I was thinking of it, i mean..YOu could put them in your suitcase in a secure bag or something.

 

It seems as long as there's no liquid and the corals are legally traded in the US, then TSA shouldn't mind. Wet paper towel might do the trick.

 

They wont work for a carry on, your restricted to a tiny amount of fluid. I would also be worried about checking them because the baggage areas aren't as pressurized as the cabin so that could pose a problem. Why not just buy the coral, and ship it home right before you leave?

 

They ship corals all over the world in the cargo areas. I actually shipped a few fish from hawaii to maine at 22 hrs with corals in the cargo area just fine. You could ship the to yourself like mentioned or find a flight that allows pets and box them and have them go along with the pet area.

 

I had a friend box frags up like he was shipping tbem and put them in his checkin luggage. The corals and clam were just fine when he got home.

Just keep your mouth shut and you will be fine.

 

I believe there is a live animal clause for commercial passenger transport. I am a pilot but not practicing (dont want to drive planes when i can kick people for a living) but that was 2000-2005 so I don't know what kind of bullcrap there is now. I would contact the FAA and TSA and talk to people about the documentation you might need. I don't think legal issues arise since all those trade shows are hounded by parks and rec!