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| At 9:24 a.m. Flight 93 received from ] the warning "Beware any cockpit intrusion—two a/c hit World Trade Center". At 9:26 a.m. the pilot asked for confirmation of the message. That was the last time flight dispatch heard from Flight 93. Two minutes later, the hijackers enter the cockpit and struggle with the pilots over control of the plane. According to the flight controllers in ], the plane dropped to a low altitude, possibly resulting from the struggle. | At 9:24 a.m. Flight 93 received from ] the warning "Beware any cockpit intrusion—two a/c hit World Trade Center". At 9:26 a.m. the pilot asked for confirmation of the message. That was the last time flight dispatch heard from Flight 93. Two minutes later, the hijackers enter the cockpit and struggle with the pilots over control of the plane. According to the flight controllers in ], the plane dropped to a low altitude, possibly resulting from the struggle. | ||
| ] | |||
| At about 9:28 a.m., after both towers of the ] had already been hit, flight controllers in Cleveland overheard some commotion, and possibly screaming, from Flight 93's cockpit. Forty seconds later, more screams were heard. During this time the aircraft dropped 700 feet (200 m). The flight controllers tried to contact the pilot and received no reply. At 9:32 a man with an ] ], probably ], transmitted to flight control the following: "Ladies and gentlemen, here the captain, please sit down, keep remaining sitting. We have a bomb on board. So sit." (It is likely that Jarrah was attempting to broadcast this over the plane's intercom, but did not understand that the message was transmitted to flight control instead.) The flight then reversed direction and began flying eastward at a low altitude. At 9:39 air traffic controllers overheard Jarrah saying, "Uh, this is the captain. Would like you all to remain seated. There is a bomb on board, and are going back to the airport, and to have our demands . Please remain quiet." There were no further transmissions. | At about 9:28 a.m., after both towers of the ] had already been hit, flight controllers in Cleveland overheard some commotion, and possibly screaming, from Flight 93's cockpit. Forty seconds later, more screams were heard. During this time the aircraft dropped 700 feet (200 m). The flight controllers tried to contact the pilot and received no reply. At 9:32 a man with an ] ], probably ], transmitted to flight control the following: "Ladies and gentlemen, here the captain, please sit down, keep remaining sitting. We have a bomb on board. So sit." (It is likely that Jarrah was attempting to broadcast this over the plane's intercom, but did not understand that the message was transmitted to flight control instead.) The flight then reversed direction and began flying eastward at a low altitude. At 9:39 air traffic controllers overheard Jarrah saying, "Uh, this is the captain. Would like you all to remain seated. There is a bomb on board, and are going back to the airport, and to have our demands . Please remain quiet." There were no further transmissions. | ||
Revision as of 16:52, 16 October 2006
- "United 93" redirects here. For other uses, see United 93 (disambiguation).
Template:Sep11United Airlines Flight 93 Occurrence Date September 11 2001 Summary Hijacking resulting in crash Site near Shanksville, Pennsylvania Aircraft type Boeing 757-222 Operator United Airlines Registration N591UA Passengers 37(including 4 hijackers) Crew 7 Fatalities 44 (including 4 hijackers) Injuries 0 Survivors 0
United Airlines Flight 93 was a regular flight from Newark International Airport (now known as Newark Liberty International Airport) in Newark, New Jersey, to San Francisco International Airport, then continuing on to Narita International Airport in Tokyo, Japan, on a different aircraft. On September 11, 2001, the United Airlines Boeing 757-222, registered N591UA, was one of four planes hijacked as part of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. It was the only one of the four planes that did not reach its intended target, instead crashing in an empty field just outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania, about 150 miles (240 km) northwest of Washington, D.C. The 9/11 Commission (through testimony, tapes of passengers' phone calls, and the flight data recorders recovered from the crash) determined that crew and passengers, alerted through phone calls to loved ones, had attempted to subdue the hijackers. The Commission concluded that the hijackers crashed the plane to keep the crew and passengers from gaining control. The Commission's official report states that co-pilot LeRoy Homer, flight attendants CeeCee Lyles and Sandra Bradshaw and passengers Todd Beamer, Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett, Andrew Garcia, Jeremy Glick, and Richard Guadagno, among others, fought back against the hijackers.
Background
The other three planes hijacked that day were American Airlines Flight 11, United Airlines Flight 175 and American Airlines Flight 77. Unlike the other three flights, four, not five, hijackers were on board Flight 93:
The hijackers were reported to be:
- Ziad Jarrah (Lebanese), pilot
- Ahmed al-Haznawi (Saudi Arabian)
- Ahmed al-Nami (Saudi Arabian)
- Saeed al-Ghamdi (Saudi Arabian)
They used knives and the threat of a bomb to take over the cockpit.
The plane was a Boeing 757-222 on a morning route from Newark International Airport (now known as Newark Liberty International Airport) in Newark, New Jersey, near New York City, to San Francisco International Airport near San Francisco, California (EWR-SFO). It had 182 seats but was carrying only 37 passengers (33 regular passengers and four hijackers) and seven crew members: two pilots, the captain Jason M. Dahl and his first officer, LeRoy Homer; and five flight attendants. Because one passenger had booked two seats, some early accounts say there were actually 38 passengers on board. The four hijackers were seated in first class.
The flight
The 9/11 Commission Report provides a detailed account and timeline for Flight 93.
The aircraft was scheduled to depart at 8:00 a.m. but did not lift off until 8:42 due to routine heavy morning traffic. Had the flight departed on time, it would likely have been hijacked around the same time as the other flights, and there is little chance the passengers would have had time to organize a revolt.
At 9:24 a.m. Flight 93 received from flight dispatch the warning "Beware any cockpit intrusion—two a/c hit World Trade Center". At 9:26 a.m. the pilot asked for confirmation of the message. That was the last time flight dispatch heard from Flight 93. Two minutes later, the hijackers enter the cockpit and struggle with the pilots over control of the plane. According to the flight controllers in Cleveland, the plane dropped to a low altitude, possibly resulting from the struggle.
At about 9:28 a.m., after both towers of the World Trade Center had already been hit, flight controllers in Cleveland overheard some commotion, and possibly screaming, from Flight 93's cockpit. Forty seconds later, more screams were heard. During this time the aircraft dropped 700 feet (200 m). The flight controllers tried to contact the pilot and received no reply. At 9:32 a man with an Arabic accent, probably Ziad Jarrah, transmitted to flight control the following: "Ladies and gentlemen, here the captain, please sit down, keep remaining sitting. We have a bomb on board. So sit." (It is likely that Jarrah was attempting to broadcast this over the plane's intercom, but did not understand that the message was transmitted to flight control instead.) The flight then reversed direction and began flying eastward at a low altitude. At 9:39 air traffic controllers overheard Jarrah saying, "Uh, this is the captain. Would like you all to remain seated. There is a bomb on board, and are going back to the airport, and to have our demands . Please remain quiet." There were no further transmissions.
The plane crashed into a reclaimed coal strip mine in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, near the municipalities of Stonycreek Township and Shanksville at 10:03 a.m., according to the 9/11 Commission Report. Other accounts give 10:06 or 10:10 a.m. as the time of impact. According to eyewitness statements, the plane was upside down and swaying when it crashed nose first into the field. It impacted at an estimated speed of 580 miles (933 km) per hour and left a crater about 115 feet (35 m) deep. All 44 people (including the hijackers) on board were killed. Authorities have since ruled that the deaths of the hijackers were suicides and that the deaths of the 40 others were homicides.
It is accepted that the destination was Washington, D.C., with the White House and -- more likely -- the United States Capitol as targets. Had the plane struck either building, it might not have killed many people other than those on board the plane; both buildings had been evacuated by 9:45 a.m., and the aircraft was around twenty minutes away when it crashed in Pennsylvania at 10 a.m. However, a strike on these buildings would have dealt a powerful psychological blow to the American public.
Passenger and crew phone calls
Much of what happened on the plane has been reconstructed from the many phone calls made by passengers and crew, mainly through onboard airphones and cellular phones. Ten passengers and two crew members made calls after the hijacking began. This was in marked contrast to the other three planes, where few phone calls were made. It has thus been possible to assemble a detailed yet incomplete picture of what happened on board through these calls.
All said that there were three rather than four hijackers. This has been interpreted as meaning that one of them (probably Jarrah, who was seated in the front row and who is accepted as being the pilot) entered the cockpit right away and did not re-emerge. He was thus not seen by the others on the plane.
In the passenger cabin, three hijackers wearing red bandannas herded most of the passengers and crew to the back of the plane. Two were armed with knives and the third held a box that supposedly contained a bomb. The remaining passengers were kept in the first-class area. One male passenger was stabbed, probably before the herding started. This person was never named or described in the phone calls, but authorities believe it was Mark Rothenberg, the only first-class passenger who did not make a phone call. A flight attendant was held in the cockpit and may have been stabbed and killed -- she was most likely the purser, Debra Welsh.
The passengers and crew became aware, through the phone calls, of what had happened to Flights 11, 175 and 77.
One first-class passenger, Tom Burnett, called his wife four times about the hijacking; she alerted the FBI. He described the death of the male passenger, asked about the other planes and stated at the end of the fourth call, "Don't worry. We're going to do something".
Another first-class passenger, Mark Bingham, called his mother and reported that three hijackers had taken over the plane. He gave little detail of them. He was apparently cut off at the end of his brief call, and did not return any of the phone calls from friends and family.
One more first-class passenger, Edward Felt, called 911 seeking information on the hijacking. His brief call was also cut off.
A coach passenger, Jeremy Glick, called his wife in New York and reported that three men had hijacked the plane, one of whom had a red box strapped to his waist which they claimed to be a bomb. Jeremy asked his wife if it was true that planes had crashed into the World Trade Center, as he had heard from other passengers. He then stated that he was going to participate "in the charge (up the aisle to the cockpit)".
Todd Beamer, another coach passenger, tried to place a credit card call through a phone located on the back of a plane seat but was routed to a customer-service representative instead, who passed him on to supervisor Lisa Jefferson. Beamer reported that one passenger was killed and, later, that the pilot and first officer were mortally wounded. He was also on the phone when the plane made its turn in a southeasterly direction, a move that had him briefly panicking. Later, he told the operator that some of the plane's passengers were planning "to jump" the hijackers. According to 9-1-1 tapes, Beamer asked for the operator to pray with him before the passengers attempted to retake the aircraft. It was widely reported that Beamer's last audible words were "Let's roll." However, the 9/11 Commission Report states that Beamer was more likely saying "roll it," referring to a drink cart that was being used as a battering ram. Regardless, the term "Let's roll" would later become the war cry for those fighting Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
Other persons who made phone calls to relatives include passenger Honor Elizabeth Wainio and flight attendants CeeCee Lyles and Sandra Bradshaw. They all mentioned charges to the cockpit by way of final words. The flight attendants also made reference to using boiling water on the hijackers. What happened afterward is uncertain, but the black box recordings revealed that the passengers did not break into the cockpit before the pilot started aiming the plane down for a crash. Although there is no evidence that the passengers succeeded in entering the cockpit, their efforts likely thwarted the hijackers' intended goal.
Orders to shoot down plane questioned
The 9/11 Commission reported that "authorities suggested that U.S. air defenses had reacted quickly, that jets had been scrambled in response to the last two hijackings and that fighters were prepared to shoot down United Airlines Flight 93 if it threatened Washington . . . In fact, the commission reported a year later, audiotapes from NORAD's Northeast headquarters and other evidence showed clearly that the military never had any of the hijacked airliners in its sights and at one point chased a phantom aircraft -- American Airlines Flight 11 -- long after it had crashed into the World Trade Center," according to CNN.com. Futhermore, the closest fighters were about 100 miles away and were unarmed. Fighters also went after a Delta Airlines Flight 1989 which was suspected to be hijacked though it was later determined untrue and the plane was safe.
"Black Box" recorders
The flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder were recovered on the afternoon of September 13, buried 25 feet (8 m) deep at the impact site, but only transcripts have been released to the public. In April 2002, in an unprecedented action, the FBI allowed the relatives of the Flight 93 victims to listen to the tapes from the cockpit voice recorder. Further details were released by the 9/11 Commission in July 2004.
The transcripts of the cockpit voice recorder were made public as part of the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, but the actual recording has not been released. At the start of the transcript, a woman is heard pleading for her life. This is thought to be the voice of a flight attendant.
The tape is reported to contain voices saying "Allahu Akbar," English shouts that included "Let's get them!" and "We have to (muffled but probably "get") in the cockpit. If we don't, we'll die." Then there is screaming and other sounds, followed by silence. Sounds of crockery smashing have led to the conclusion that a service trolley was used as a battering ram to force open the cockpit door. The tape also debunks speculation about First Officer LeRoy W. Homer Jr. being injured when the hijackers can be heard saying, "Inform them, and tell him to talk to the pilot. Bring the pilot back," indicating that they were having difficulty controlling the plane and needed the assistance of LeRoy Homer.
The hijackers themselves appear to have all retreated into the cockpit prior to the charge, and they can be heard praying, reassuring themselves, and discussing on separate occasions, in Arabic, whether to use a fire axe in the cockpit on those outside or to cut off the oxygen to quell the charge. Jarrah said, "Is that it? Shall we finish it off?" Another hijacker replied, "No. Not yet. When they all come, we finish it off." Jarrah later said, "Is that it? I mean, shall we put it down?" to which another hijacker replied, "Yes, put it in it, and pull it down," then later "Pull it down! Pull it down!"
The 9/11 Commission found from the recordings that, contrary to what many had believed, the passengers did not succeed in entering the cockpit. The 9/11 Commission ruled that the actions of the crew and passengers prevented the destruction of the White House or the U.S. Capitol building. According to an interview with captured Al-Qaeda mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, as published in The New York Times on September 9, 2002, the target of Flight 93 was indeed the U.S. Capitol.
Pictures of the flight data recorders found at the crash site
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Cockpit Voice Recorder
-
Flight Data Recorder
While sifting through the wreckage, investigators reported finding a serrated belt-clip knife, as well as a cigarette lighter with a concealed blade.
Gallery of photos of the crash site
Aftermath
All those on board Flight 93 were nominated for a Congressional Gold Medal on September 19, 2001. These awards have not been granted, but the crew and passengers of Flight 93 have been the subject of numerous other honors, including a government memorial passed on September 10, 2002. The permanent memorial is expected to be completed in 2010–11. On September 24, 2001, President George W. Bush held a special meeting for the families of Flight 93's victims at the White House.
After 9/11 an American flag was hung over gate 17A, from which Flight 93 departed at Newark airport. The flag still presides there as of September 2006. There is also a private memorial to the crew in the United Airlines ramp agents' break room below the gate.
The flight route designation for future flights on the same route was renumbered from Flight 93 to Flight 81 in October 2001 out of respect for those who died. Among some of the passengers to fly this route was Lisa Beamer, wife of Todd Beamer, to prove to the hijackers that Americans would not stop flying because of what had happened. Melodie Homer, wife of LeRoy Homer, flew this route in order to complete the flight that her husband was unable to. Since then, United Airlines has renumbered all of its flights. The current flight number is 91.
Todd Beamer's "let's roll" has become a national catchphrase, with President Bush himself using it in several speeches.
Both Shanksville and Somerset County have become much better known as the result of the crash. Somerset County now has a special council, run by the Somerset County Flight 93 Coordinator, which handles Flight 93 matters such as visitors' gifts and memorial services.
The crash was commemorated in ceremonies, public and private, on 11 September 2002 and 2003 at the field where the plane crashed.
After the crash the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey changed the name of Newark's airport from Newark International Airport to Newark Liberty International Airport. The Flight that Fought Back was a Discovery Channel docudrama of the events that occurred on United Airlines Flight 93. It premiered at 9 p.m. on the 4th anniversary of 9/11. Flight 93, a TV movie based on the events on Flight 93, was broadcast on 30 January 2006 on A&E. United 93, a theatrical film based on the same events, was released on 28 April 2006.
Flight 93 National Memorial
A national design competition was held to create a public memorial in the Pennsylvania field where Flight 93 crashed. The winning design for the Flight 93 National Memorial is called the Crescent of Embrace. The site plan features a large crescent pathway with red maples and sugar maples planted along the outer arc.
The design has created some controversy because the terrorists who hijacked the airplane were Muslim fundamentalists . The crescent is a generally recognized symbol of Islam, and the Red Crescent is used as the Islamic equivalent of the Red Cross. The crescent is represented on the flags of a number of countries with Muslim majorities. The architect asserts that there is no intent on referencing Muslim symbols (a sentiment that has been shared by several families of the victims) and is willing to discuss design modifications.
Conspiracy theories
Main article: 9/11 conspiracy theories § United Flight 93A number of allegations have been made about the truthfulness of the official report into the crash of Flight 93:
- Conspiracy theorists say that pieces of Flight 93 were found three miles and eight miles away from the crash site and suggest that this may be evidence of a shoot down.
- Jim Hoffman says there is a three-minute discrepancy in the cockpit voice recording immediately prior to the flight's crash. The cockpit voice recorder transcripts end at 10:03 a.m., but Cleveland Air Traffic Control reported that Flight 93 went out of radar contact at 10:06 a.m., and FAA radar records note a time of 10:06 a.m. Seismologists record an impact at 10:06:05 a.m., +/- a couple of seconds.
- Paul Thompson says fighter jets were actually much closer to Flight 93 at the time of the crash than is stated in the official record . He also says that witnesses reported a small white jet near the impact site soon after the crash .
See also
- United Airlines flight 93 for the Misplaced Pages tribute pages for this flight
- USS Somerset
- See Casualties of the September 11, 2001 attacks: plane passengers for the flight manifest
- The Flight that Fought Back
- Flight 93 (TV film)
- United 93 (film)
References
- "FAA Registry (N591UA)". Federal Aviation Administration.
- "FAA Registry (N591UA)". Federal Aviation Administration.
- "Chapter 1". 9/11 Commission Report. pp. page 10.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help); External link in|chapterurl=|chapterurl=ignored (|chapter-url=suggested) (help) - "'Fighting' knife found in Flight 93 wreckage". WorldNetDaily. 2002, March 22. Retrieved 2006-04-11.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Getter, Lisa, Richard A. Serrano, Carol J. Williams, Times Staff Writers (2001, September 18). "After the Attack; the Investigation; FBI Finds Suicide Note; More Men Detained; Probe: Airline uniforms and a letter were left behind by one accused hijacker. Suspects' tickets, five of which were for one way, were bought in late August". Los Angeles Times.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Ward, Paula Reed (2005, September 8). "Flight 93 marker design picked". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Morgan, Rowland (August 19, 2006). "Flight 93 'was shot down' claims book". Daily Mail. Retrieved 2006-09-03.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Kim, Won-Young and Gerald R. Baum. "Seismic Observations during September 11, 2001, Terrorist Attack (pdf)" (PDF). Retrieved April 11.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help)
External links
Websites
- The Final 9/11 Commission Report
- Flight 93 Cockpit Tape Transcript.
- Flight 93 Memorial Project (official website).
- United 93 Theatrical Movie Official Site.
- National Park Foundation Flight 93 Memorial Site.
- A video dedicated to those fallen on flight 93.
- A foundation created in the memory of First Officer LeRoy W. Homer Jr..
- Timeline of events on Flight 93
News articles
- MSNBC article 25-September-2001
- UA Flight 93: Minute by Minute.
- Air Traffic Control Recording of 9/11 Flight 93.
- Transcript/translation of Flight 93 cockpit voice recorder.
- Scott, William B. (2002). "F-16 Pilots Considered Ramming Flight 93". special report. Aviation Week. Retrieved 2006-07-27.