[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。8 ~) `+ ^2 l/ B; L! G
rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de! A6 ]9 J; f' ?, G7 ~
Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': USrs238848.rs.hosteurope.de9 g/ E3 ]5 [$ `( J, h* @
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.
" u# ~( k& d& j1 S. U4 Brs238848.rs.hosteurope.de7 n- _& d7 D% b' x6 F& \
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 j) ~' Q6 b3 q; s: Zrs238848.rs.hosteurope.de- E8 r1 f* r  i* Y( e* P0 B2 R: {
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.
$ m9 p* y* `- U, e# i% \6 ]/ Q2 x
/ t' b8 n; |; a$ _. T5 HUS authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.: h+ T/ n) G, s1 |' t

* w" |8 ^( K0 ~3 k' x2 W  {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.
2 G' s  i8 D) j" k; N+ BMr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.
6 L: M3 D, u3 |# [- j
, N* j& K, j1 ]: T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.
# e6 r: `; M1 m8 Q8 ]) |" J- C* |; {( T  c7 Q. _# U1 k) \1 \. T1 P& ?$ v  ~
"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
4 U/ O- _7 L1 o+ a+ p; b
; J6 b* _- [0 q8 A" I& Ers238848.rs.hosteurope.deThe policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.+ }, x) A7 O% @* O

$ s* I% x1 K7 U% H$ I人在德国 社区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.