美国政府决定从8月4日开始，停止施行已经两年，禁止乘客带普通打火机上飞机的政策。美国运输部认为，在乘客登机前搜索他们身上是否携带打火机，根本是浪费时间。 2001年当鞋子炸弹客芮德意图在从巴黎飞往迈阿密的班机上，用火柴引燃藏在鞋子里的炸弹後，美国政府在国会的坚持之下，终於宣布了禁带打火机上机的命令。 ; Z6 H# Y! Z" `. F: J + F7 b' o; |3 S
Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US. C& V. D5 A; {) A' z; l+ r
US authorities will no longer enforce a two-year-old ban against taking cigarette lighters on planes because searching passengers wasted time and did not improve aviation security, the New York Times reports.( v4 Y% k! X U! z8 M, J# i
2 ]/ j' U* l; P" k
The ban on lighters was ordered by US lawmakers after a passenger, Richard Reid, tried to ignite a bomb in his shoe in 2001 on a flight from Paris to Miami. 9 ~, F/ v; J$ R) b * V' h( m$ `0 D; l& L0 IReid, known as the "shoe bomber", had used matches to try to ignite explosives concealed in his shoe and is currently serving a life sentence for trying to blow up the transatlantic flight. ; W& z( L) e" I( v. C* f8 p3 Z% b, G1 M
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.6 p2 a _3 o1 J' u( x9 }" P, |* |
# n0 F9 ]7 e' [; t3 R/ {7 b
US Transport Security Administration assistant secretary Kip Hawley says the ban on lighters did not significantly enhance security because small batteries could be used to detonate a bomb. ! [$ R$ y' E$ x3 ?% n- O; bMr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.+ O- |7 o2 B0 H- _8 E7 {+ H% ^
0 y6 y; O' W. _# A" |"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said., ~; r* ?% v/ a/ M! @# n2 j3 P! r
# a& D5 P( j7 N
"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."; C) g# l1 H- o
$ D7 y& D7 v) {4 W
The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters. # G$ c4 @$ Y; e3 x! p* Y% H: I3 X1 Q, N6 H
The New York Times says some 22,000 lighters a day are collected by security officers at airports across the United States and disposing of the confiscated lighters has cost about $US4 million a year.
