[国际新闻] 美国撤除禁令8月起可带打火机上飞机

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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。人在德国 社区2 Z2 X$ b( W* ?0 q% d/ f( p9 @9 {
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Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US$ J2 b3 H% f% Q; F6 W* [0 Q
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.) M" _3 N: F# f0 o) S& L$ n- R+ r5 W
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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.
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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" G0 f8 u2 }) |, x; E* b7 lUS authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
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  ^/ Q* P. \4 m; J, sUS 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.0 j: j8 A/ D6 W, ?* f8 d
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.人在德国 社区2 G1 O- I/ J/ }- f- v
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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."2 E7 g  m& @; c1 s
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The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.人在德国 社区1 V, ~$ E* k2 E( i

. J0 u) @. T# GThe 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.