[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。5.35.249.64# F4 S* @% s) y* a' M8 o6 C0 H/ [* H
4 O  f% o5 ^4 f; Y. u. C
Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US* R1 U' i% X: e, `/ c. g! d8 H0 P- 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.人在德国 社区" v+ g$ Y" i( S' A0 h) d

, g, f1 Q2 n9 E* }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.5.35.249.647 P6 b; k* l# l! ]* ^5 F
2 K6 [$ @+ r; l- M% Q8 @$ {9 V. r, n
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.5.35.249.64  Q- x" P5 m0 o! H. w, J
6 T/ j2 J% }- m1 j
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
: U  a7 `9 R) ^* _, W4 Z5 a+ g& A3 o
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.5.35.249.64. y  M% Y( ^) T5 }7 p
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.5.35.249.64, G8 s. f- ^4 A( u
4 e5 b% ]2 A( Y) d
"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.5.35.249.643 e8 X* \7 b+ p
人在德国 社区' g4 g5 t% W; {! k8 I3 F. ~7 Y
"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
* r# x+ v. E/ ]  B) x% S5.35.249.64
0 `6 t4 w, _5 _; `  e人在德国 社区The policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
: _1 s- C& X; ^# W. {1 x( t5.35.249.64人在德国 社区  D; G+ c( N! F
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.