[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。% R& M- Q$ D; \3 m# s) J8 ]* q: k6 L
; n! H( o: J) g, R2 ]% T9 x
Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US/ E; V* |4 E, e' ?; V8 d1 P- c
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.
; \: k+ Q- m+ u) h- t  y5 D
6 @8 Z! z6 O8 H5 J4 o7 WThe 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.* Z. \# r& l; v6 L" `
rs238848.rs.hosteurope.de% w& |4 ?7 A# F+ s4 U
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.5 Q, A" y- s# A
人在德国 社区0 J5 ^( Z1 E% @' u- V
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
  \$ Q9 L) W' F% U* a. o. H. \/ N5 |" `
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.
9 p2 u% N5 {: ^: {; w& jMr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.6 |5 i6 {' C/ s0 ^0 B0 ^

, R/ w8 _: }' N5 _; F"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.
7 Z" K# ^8 `5 N8 r% n
, {3 j# e% C& X8 B, ^9 s  ]"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."+ P2 V% C2 L& T1 T! k

. J$ t2 F, q- M0 |. A7 kThe policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
" ?# |+ i( }, s5 wrs238848.rs.hosteurope.ders238848.rs.hosteurope.de# [/ H: r% F' J; L8 g# }3 z" m
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.