[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。1 k! t2 |) A6 S+ I2 X

4 ^! L' P2 J5 e* ?  R1 hCigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
! U2 }0 R7 \9 A- T% l" Brs238848.rs.hosteurope.deUS 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., d( l2 {4 g' W7 w+ J
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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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; t/ f' V7 y/ |3 h7 Y: ^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.
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US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.人在德国 社区+ x. B9 m" q0 B7 i3 W4 T
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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.
$ x: k) `) J5 \. ?) N) Drs238848.rs.hosteurope.deMr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.人在德国 社区2 [% X4 h2 f3 r$ a) u  P. W
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"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.: n6 e4 i( W9 c6 w

+ V  r7 @7 o1 W0 o0 s2 Q- r% M- n& X"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
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The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.人在德国 社区0 X' V/ |5 G* ~6 h8 K8 }' R

) o) I) Z; w2 C1 q6 \  U* M1 HThe 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.