[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。9 R% c& Q) U; r) s- B; t

6 R- Z9 X0 Q8 T7 U& ?Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
( p6 C# S/ v# ~. K7 n8 m; w/ RUS 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.
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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.
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. d! w1 o; l0 z; T" Q! j# l( Z3 xrs238848.rs.hosteurope.deReid, 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.
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US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.3 }' ~; p. J& ]) v0 P% i4 x! [
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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.0 z2 g/ Q  `  \! J: v+ _% R
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.4 I* u0 `* [) b

0 ?7 u3 y0 d$ j, D4 p"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.- P$ w0 W% Y# R; E

3 X/ J5 a5 a8 U+ g"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
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" b: Y% z* I' W- M, ~The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.$ E2 l  d. O' ~% Z

$ {5 k2 j  F# ~( I2 y# i. ZThe 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.