[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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2 J6 L/ |  ]5 e5.35.249.64Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US1 o0 Y) v1 x. P" O5 m% H
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" l: G0 V0 J7 ~8 d4 p) G3 Z. o

& H/ D( x( o! HThe 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.5.35.249.64$ S' ]- N; r2 _9 X9 E3 G

9 `  H- D6 a  u" K* B5 dReid, 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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# v$ s" Z' ]6 x6 K/ P5 t) ^( \4 QUS authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.5.35.249.648 }& }- ~2 Z; b- P4 j  I9 T& I/ p
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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.$ p, C+ k# [  v" H5 R* }* Q' k3 U
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.
  u, R3 J+ X# O; N5 f人在德国 社区
* J! C; F0 K- \. Y+ g( K; ^"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.
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9 Z  O# {- V- n0 h"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
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7 m7 C6 Y. m+ b( @0 t7 t( |  jThe policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
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6 \7 k& o; K% D. Y7 @8 u8 VThe 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.