I did in fact phone Brussels Airlines 3 times prior to my flight to ask what, if anything I needed to do, all three said I needed to pay a fee to the airline at the check in counter. When I got to Dulles, they said there was no charge, at my transit destination, Brussels, as I was boarding, they pulled me out of line and had me pay 130 Euros, trust me, I honestly did not care about this. What I cared about was the hassle in Douala, Cameroon, both flying out of Douala to the camp area, then again when I was flying out of Douala to return home. My entire frustration was being bounced around from agent to agent, none of which seemed to know 2+2=4. I honestly thought two of the ticketing agents were going to get in a fight trying to sort out what needed to happen for my gun to get on the plane.