[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。
4 }: Z" v5 Q* E9 Q$ v * X) {4 r2 s* _( b
Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US" R* N6 t4 S0 I, G- _
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.: m7 @) u3 y: B) }
0 r* V8 j8 }, Q5 C
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 ~, E& q% w. q; Q8 p; k8 A  p( L" B1 |( D$ U
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.9 R, Z: y5 R/ X2 {' {* j, s) F+ Z+ v
# b% r$ ^2 @: p5 o# @' k
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.人在德国 社区0 Q4 {9 r* {1 y4 u

7 N8 ]0 m2 L5 {. Z0 m5 @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.! @. j/ a: g/ T4 y. O. f
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.7 p" s* S% k! ~5 F& G9 z" S$ O
# w8 q# M& u, M
"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.
, |8 [6 ]8 Y  F/ v5 U. l1 }4 X
# {9 ?- m$ G# p3 e  h6 G"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
# O5 y& w1 G, n' V6 l, b; k7 T( t1 p+ H/ j+ L/ j. x
The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
0 ], i* x: T- y3 }2 M8 M# @9 l" R  F( }8 \; X3 _0 V
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.