[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。
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) z' F1 M& F4 a3 {/ i: UCigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US. E' y+ W: b  l
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.  T$ U2 _  Q: ?  L) x. Z

( \& P, H& y8 k' }人在德国 社区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.% b# A4 f% j% ]$ |7 Q
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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.人在德国 社区5 p: {* q( U3 d5 l. G, K- w9 _5 i, ~+ R
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US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights./ ~! r. U9 W  I8 Z+ W3 G

: s! \& [! M) K2 ]- P6 P$ K" }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.$ G2 c+ j. }8 H3 R5 p
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.7 D6 u0 E; M$ e) B
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"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.1 |5 W& j, n5 Q2 B+ N, g: j8 J

1 T" ~& m8 n5 v% Y  a"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."7 [! R4 a7 Q8 D0 \
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The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
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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.