[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。* ?3 F. {7 U0 Q3 J; L

( ?4 V5 k. M" ]" J1 _Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
" F; V9 q5 _+ ^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.rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de, ^- I8 k2 \$ P, }

5 k3 j1 \: y; S% n5 w0 B3 b; f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.人在德国 社区/ I# r) m. p3 A; e+ \3 s1 _

" A# E+ k6 A/ s9 ^人在德国 社区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./ [) L9 o$ K( p& E% T

3 Y0 f6 n0 d2 N* m0 }US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de/ ~$ H7 t8 `  _4 E3 A( E7 p
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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./ O$ `# [' f; R. H  @0 P: D2 J
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.
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"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.
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4 K$ y' O* D, F3 D7 ]7 cThe 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.