Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is the fourth busiest airport in the entire world, with 78.5 million passengers moving through the airport in 2018 alone.
And here in the U.S., more people begin or end their journey at LAX than at any other airport in the entire country.
So with that many people rolling through, one can only begin to imagine the crazy stuff that goes on at LAX.
If you thought emotional pet-therapy animals were as weird as it gets at the airport – check out the bizarre things that happen in Los Angeles.
Sneaking Through The Dead
Yep, one family actually tried to sneak a dead guy through security.
As it turns out, the man had passed away earlier in the day. But that didn’t stop his family from trying to get him back home!
Apparently, the dead man’s family bought him a ticket, strapped him into a wheelchair, and attempted to roll him through security so they could bury him in Mexico.
Bloomberg reported:
“I truly thought I had seen it all until I got a call that there was a person who had seemingly passed away while waiting to clear security,” says Keith Jeffries, LAX’s federal security director.”
Completely nuts. But one has to applaud their creativity.
Airports Make Money Off Your Stuff
As people are forced to take off their shoes and empty their toiletries and electronics, a shocking number of stuff gets left behind.
People leave everything from laptops to cell phones to surfboards to chainsaws…
… not to mention all the stuff TSA steals from passengers like coffee grinds that are above the allowed limit, to of course your “lethal” shampoo and toothpaste.
After they steal your stuff, the airport stores it and then makes money off selling it.
Yeah, we’re not shocked.
Private Terminal For The “Real” VIPs
While some people think access to a private airport lounge is VIP treatment – at LAX, the real VIPs get their very own terminal.
But not without a price, as The Private Suite ranks in at $4,500 a year (and a minimum of $2,700 a flight).
Travelers who opt for this service get 8 people assigned to them to cater to their every need.
Sure, they get car-to-plane service and a bunch of fancy stuff like massages and haircuts.
But not everyone has the luxury to drop $7,000 to avoid the normal inconveniences of travel.
As for the rest of us, we’ll just grab a burger and $6 bottle of water and sit with the common folk.
Bizarre Contraband
You might have filled out a Customs form before and been surprised by some of the questions you’re required to answer, such as if you are bringing over meats, animals, wildlife products, or snails…
… but there’s a reason these questions are on there.
It’s because people try and sneak all kinds of crazy things into America!
Especially at LAX.
The Toronto Sun reported 450 pork tamales were seized by Customs when a traveler from Mexico attempted to bring them into the U.S. in his luggage.
Another Vietnamese man was arrested for smuggling 93 living Asian songbirds into LAX inside his luggage…
…of course most of the birds died.
Apparently this is a thing as another guy overseas also tried to bring back birds, but had taped them to his legs.
Airport Theme
Every airport has its quirks.
In Atlanta you can get mugged, while at JFK you can witness TSA protesting by blasting explicit rap music over the speakers.
But in LAX, expect to see some really weird stuff from exotic bird smugglers to a high-class socialite (who clearly didn’t know about the private terminal) whining because TSA confiscated the blades of her juice blender.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever seen at an airport?
Do you have any travel stories of bizarre run-ins with travelers?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below and be sure to share this article with all your friends!
