S'porean family misses flight after toy gun found in hand carry, spends S$3,000 booking new tickets

A Singaporean family’s holiday recently gave them an important learning moment when they missed their flight after a toy gun was found in their son’s hand luggage during security screening.

The woman, Sharon Tang, recounted the incident via an Instagram post in the hopes of preventing other families from having the same experience.

Morning flight

Speaking to Mothership, Tang, who is in her 40s, said she wanted this to be a reminder for parents to double-check their children’s bags before travelling and said that this was a “parenting lesson” for her and her husband.

She added, “As parents, we take full responsibility for what happened. Our son was simply excited about the trip, and we should have checked his bag more carefully.”

Her family was previously at Changi Airport Terminal 3 on Mar. 15, 2026, to catch a morning flight to Guangzhou, China, for a family holiday.

Her husband, herself, and their twins, who will soon be turning seven, were getting their bags screened.

Toy gun in hand carry

It was then that “security found that our son … had placed a toy gun in his hand carry”, said Tang.

Though they immediately offered to dispose of the toy to proceed to the gate, they had to wait for clearance from officers.

Resolving the issue

By the time officers arrived, there was less than five minutes till departure, said Tang, adding that the gate was already in the process of closing.

However, necessary procedures still had to be followed.

Tang said: “[Officers were] discussing the situation and writing the necessary statement before clearing us.

“In that moment we were panicking and pleading if things could move a little faster.”

Missed flight, new tickets

The family ended up missing their flight. “To be clear, everyone was simply doing their job and following protocol,” said Tang, noting that the toy gun was disposed of.

She added, “Safety and documentation are important. But as parents watching the minutes disappear while our flight slipped away, it felt incredibly helpless.”

Though the original airline offered them a later flight at night, Tang said “that would have meant arriving after midnight, and our hotel and transport had already been arranged”.

Following this, the family booked new tickets for a flight with a different airline that departed on the afternoon of Mar. 15.

Calling it an “unexpected S$3,000 lesson”, Tang said that was the price of the new tickets for a one-way trip to Guangzhou.

Family learning moment

Noting that her children felt confused and upset, Tang said this was “because they could see that we were stressed”.

“As parents, the last thing we want is for our children to feel that tension,” she added.

After things had settled down, Tang and her husband then calmly explained to their children why airport security rules are important and certain items, even toys, can cause problems when travelling.

Tang said: “We also told them it wasn’t about blaming anyone — it was a learning moment for all of us.”

“If this post saves even one family from the same stressful (and expensive) mistake, it’s worth sharing.”