[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。" w/ g2 g' ^# D! ]& |5 C1 D7 Q
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Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
- y" K  c: E0 \0 }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.# V# @! `1 e& V9 d+ }5 V

  s" j$ p/ w! S5 i2 Y% lThe 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.; X* ]- b' u9 o3 K2 {& Y
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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.
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1 U$ L  g9 T8 d* {US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.& _; K) w" ~# w* ~8 K! p( @1 e9 c

2 J' F0 p6 y& {3 Q# D& U人在德国 社区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.
4 K  b: H6 v7 q  z( prs238848.rs.hosteurope.deMr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.
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  g; c7 K3 U9 \- m1 S人在德国 社区"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said., P$ {- }3 o0 [2 W1 ^2 W# p7 ?+ U& |

# ^' m7 n& C* s; j  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.
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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.