Flight 93 9/11 Memorial Pennsylvania

United Airlines Flight 93 left Newark NJ at 8:42 AM for San Francisco.

Warning: The text includes disturbing descriptions of events and

quotes from passengers on the flight.

Visitor Center/ 911 Memorial

 The hijackers attacked at 9:28. While traveling 35,000 feet above eastern Ohio, United 93 suddenly dropped 700 feet. Eleven seconds into the descent, the FAA’s air traffic control center in Cleveland received the first of two radio transmissions from the aircraft. During the first broadcast, the captain or first officer could be heard declaring “Mayday” amid the sounds of a physical struggle in the cockpit. The second radio transmission, 35 seconds later, indicated that the fight was continuing. The captain or first officer could be heard shouting:“ Hey get out of here—get out of here—get out of here.”(1)

 The Flight 93 Memorial is a National Memorial hosted by the National Park Service. We walked slowly along the trail.

 

At 9:57, the passenger assault began. Several passengers had terminated

phone calls with loved ones in order to join the revolt. One of the callers

ended her message as follows: “Everyone’s running up to first class. I’ve got to

go. Bye.”

The cockpit voice recorder captured the sounds of the passenger assault

muffled by the intervening cockpit door. Some family members who listened

to the recording report that they can hear the voice of a loved one among the

din. We cannot identify whose voices can be heard. But the assault was sustained. (2)

Visitors can circle a trail conducive to reflection on the way to the site where passengers attacked the men who hijacked their flight, which was headed toward Washington DC.

Crash site/ Debris field

In response, Jarrah immediately began to roll the airplane to the left and right, attempting to knock the passengers off balance. At 9:58:57, Jarrah told another hijacker in the cockpit to block the door. Jarrah continued to roll the airplane sharply left and right, but the assault continued. At 9:59:52, Jarrah changed tactics and pitched the nose of the airplane up and down to disrupt the assault. The recorder captured the sounds of loud thumps, crashes, shouts, and breaking glasses and plates. At 10:00:03, Jarrah stabilized the airplane.

Five seconds later, Jarrah asked,“ Is that it? Shall we finish it off?” A hijacker responded, “No. Not yet. When they all come, we finish it off.” The sounds of fighting continued outside the cockpit. Again, Jarrah pitched the nose of the aircraft up and down. At 10:00:26, a passenger in the background said, “In the cockpit. If we don’t we’ll die!” Sixteen seconds later, a passenger yelled, “Roll it!” (3)

There were no survivors. The plane crashed upside-down at 563 miles per hour into this Somerset County field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. 

There were 33 passengers and 7 crew members.

Wall of Names Flight 93

Our flags along the wall

Link to phone calls at nps.gov

Link to Timeline and Details from nps.gov


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Notes

Inside the visitor center is a timeline on several boards that tells the story of Flight 93 from takeoff to crash using explanatory text, photos of the crash and responders, videos from 911 news stories, and emotional audio recordings of calls from passengers recorded on home machines.

There are rest rooms and a gift store.

Rangers are available.

About photos: I took the photos when we visited the memorial 15 June 2021, which is the 20th year since the 11 September attack.

Website for more information: https://www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm

my website   www.suttong.com

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Learn more about Flight 93:  AMAZON BOOKS      GOOGLE

Footnotes

The 9/11 commission report: 1. page 29.  2. page 31.  3. page 32

Reference

The 9/11 commission report: Final report of the national commission on terrorist attacks upon the United States (2004). U.S. Government Printing Office. 0160723043