[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。
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Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US
: O4 B% c# K) O" i$ yUS 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.7 V/ Z% N! w4 [$ G! ~. T

* @( @' `9 S) l5 h# e. I$ iThe 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.5.35.249.649 }3 H. J' z2 \

4 [: P! A2 |9 w; i2 P+ ZUS authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
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4 l: P) l5 ~2 `1 F# nUS 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.5.35.249.64/ k  u6 ~/ E, U& Z
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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* N& T- b  N: K% n) E  m0 X+ r. M"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."1 i* f, F# g' o* C- F! G) Q  [( K
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The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.% T5 r/ m( t) \& ]$ M" c' B

# O# e( y+ B2 W. IThe 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.