[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。人在德国 社区3 g0 c) n+ Q- a, a- C9 D* V; c

0 @# a" C" }: ?1 q; A" f' ~Cigarette lighter ban 'a waste of time': US' j, |, n3 s; p: U1 k
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.8 d/ X$ U7 d) Z2 l0 P3 y. @. y+ _

8 [5 h9 Q" s' |  U1 qThe 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.
' F( a1 c% c5 e0 j; o6 K) r, O7 J人在德国 社区
- a) O+ V& l) R: Z5 A8 `! G6 z& PReid, 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.
- ]0 R1 W% ^. a$ `$ n% o* H9 I: F  U4 M2 Z$ ~5 s/ T
US authorities have never tried to ban matches from flights.
! D( f0 G4 U: Z# b) H# Y
/ |' L- ]/ c  q6 y( fcsuchen.deUS 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.csuchen.de+ M# d3 U; S: P3 b6 y& @8 o
Mr Hawley says lifting the prohibition will free up security officers to spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts.
" @* @4 L: _7 }8 x% o7 u  Z: v. c7 c; o8 f) q
"The number one threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point," he said.
" ]- f2 q/ y& F0 b2 d8 i: @  S' i' Z1 L( U# P
"We don't want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that."
( A* W9 [; X1 ~4 Vcsuchen.de
$ E4 O( d- Z1 m8 m7 s( EThe policy change is to take effect on August 4 and applies to disposable butane lighters and refillable lighters.
# @% D; L! _- d  u6 X8 S/ o8 a  E; _2 l; t
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.