5 replies to this topic

[JaVe]

First read THIS And then comment.

I think this is crazy, no lighters in even your stowed away baggage, but in which country are you even allowed to carry guns at all in your stowed baggae? I can see people fear of lighters exploding or them damaging stuff (not much of a chance of that happening) but it is just insane to think of takinga gun. I think we're talking about america here. Even if the ammunition and the gun are stored separately, it is way more extreme an idea of taking a gun than a lighter. How do you feel?

[Wyllt]

Well, you can carry guns on checked bagage as long as they are declared and properly packed. You cannot have lighters in your checked bagage and haven't been able to for 30 years (according to the article you linked to). The issue is not gun vs. lighter, it is what is allowed in the carry on luggage, and after 9/11 of course they are going to get really tight and restrict anything that can be used as a weapon of any kind. I don't know if you recall, but a couple of years ago someone boarded a plane with a bomb on his feet, a "shoe bomb" with a lighter such a bomb could easily be lit. By resticting access to lighters you are limiting what such a nut job can do. Sure he could bring matches, (which should be stopped if your going to restrict lighters in my opinion) but there is a greater chance of being noticed trying to light a match than a lighter.

Now as to having guns in the cargo hold, well exactly how do you expect someone to get into the cargo hold, locate thier bag and extract the weapon and amunition without being noticed? So having a gun in the cargo hold is not at all on par in any way as having a lighter in your carry on, and in fact the lighter represents the greater immediate threat.

Don't get me wrong I think guns should also be banned from air travel, but that is more my anit-gun beliefs than any safety issue that can be logically argued.

[JaVe]

Yeh i agree, and the shoebomb i agree with that its a very important point. I've heard of that shoebomb incident before - but, metal detectors go all the way down to your feet don't they?

[stifmeister659]

Its fair, what if, by some coincidence, there was tublence and the lighter um... lighted it would set the whole plane on fire and kill a lot of poeple

[Darker333]

Personally, I think that this is either a real security issue OR that it's a stunt to stop smoking when you land.. If its the second thing then I will personally tell everyone to support this

[Joshua]

Darker333, on Apr 16 2005, 12:11 AM, said:

Personally, I think that this is either a real security issue OR that it's a stunt to stop smoking when you land.. If its the second thing then I will personally tell everyone to support this

It might also be that in an enclosed space like a plane if someone sneaks in a cigarette or something everyone has to breathe the smoke, meaning they're subjected to the risk of lung cancer unwillingly. Personally I like the idea of no lighters on planes, of course I don't like cigarettes either, so...