[国际新闻] 美国撤除禁令8月起可带打火机上飞机

日月光

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。
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9 e, S* x( {! MCigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
  i. Y3 H4 y2 ^; i/ DUS 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.rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de; M' Z. W( [6 Y- F

9 [/ Z. C& ^  A0 z1 TThe 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.4 g# p6 A* x% G( F& J; V
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Reid, 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.; J5 A  j. G( ]
人在德国 社区  x. r, w# y/ N3 X
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
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5 H$ U% t0 M( B& m+ Q人在德国 社区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.
5 R# ^. w# ~. e0 L4 N- mrs238848.rs.hosteurope.deMr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.
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. |4 `, L, [8 `人在德国 社区"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.% [  ?, J  q: E8 L( R2 ^$ S
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"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."9 L7 C# Q/ q. ^/ w0 l0 K

( t0 o5 W% m* y" NThe policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.人在德国 社区. g: T) D/ T5 C9 c" J

- Z  `* b# m9 R, [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.