[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。  q' {% M) u% X# {- p/ T. V3 X

+ Q0 ^+ O8 S( J# e0 Z$ @Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
7 J. ^' N3 v& d$ |1 t  Z2 xrs238848.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., ]  Q* S$ v$ [# m5 M1 |
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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.0 ?) O1 ]8 L4 u) }- ^

# p5 h& d7 h6 m, o. a" Q3 x! aReid, 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.! `7 p' P6 B9 K& g

5 q8 _# N7 U% @' E2 e6 d- y4 ?US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.6 b( j2 F. T4 v, L4 c0 i- X

, j7 ~( {; N/ m* T  V$ |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.; k* o: n$ {6 p* u. K
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.
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"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.  i' N6 p/ }* k+ D) E8 L
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"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
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1 H% ~) q/ Z  T  Y7 y: ]The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
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: w) \3 ?0 X% T. 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.