[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。: |7 v1 t; Y' p4 n8 O( B8 D
- e! N# X8 \+ ?
Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
" q; ]0 _% C- S4 RUS 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." z& ^0 E6 A, U3 s+ w$ Y" z

, B5 o: {" G  g, Y  P7 }8 KThe 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.rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de3 X1 w) C: T6 t- Z9 X

* L- h6 j  \1 ], j) B  ers238848.rs.hosteurope.deReid, 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.& M* c8 _4 [& E! o
. z* Q! _# n+ Q( Q" \
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
4 X( Y) p' e3 G# c' Irs238848.rs.hosteurope.de7 h3 Z/ o. Z2 C7 ^9 L% b
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.8 B' l, l0 G- J- G; ]9 j% q
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.+ R  q+ @: u7 s6 T- }' \& W
* `9 K7 e7 n: ~3 G3 V6 J4 F
"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.
( {4 h" U4 r, \  Y9 y% h- yrs238848.rs.hosteurope.de
' C% I  K7 R- c6 D3 {- N, I"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
5 b# u! s: d& O, H5 {  k* f3 P
4 o- t# `- J# H, B- Prs238848.rs.hosteurope.deThe policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
3 h, M4 h; M, Q  L. w! T' I' U; G0 w1 l& L" H
% I5 b2 [6 k! O$ E; n- MThe 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.