Today is September 11th.   9 / 11

This is the 10 year anniversary of the terrorists attacks on our country.  This is a reprint of my annual September 11th post because I actually had 5 of the terrorists on board my flights the summer of 2001 during their reconnoissance flights.  My comment to Mohammed Atta caused them to modify their plans from using all American Airlines planes to using two from United Airlines.  After I recounted my story to a working American Airlines Flight Attendant, she looked at me, gave me a hug, and said “You are a hero. You saved some of our planes and crews and passengers.”  I told her that “ yes, there were two less American Airlines planes, but two more United ones.  So I don’t feel like a hero at all.”  Of course, I had no idea that I had been conversing with the ringleader until well after 9/11 and I saw the terrorists names and pictures.   Here is my true story.

At the time, I was an active Flight Attendant for a major United States carrier.   Yes, one of the ones that lost planes, crew members, and passengers.  And no, I did not know anyone on board any of those historic flights and even though I lived in NYC for a number of years, I did not know anyone who was murdered in the attack on our country that day.

I was at home between flights thinking about packing for my regularly scheduled flight the following morning when the phone rang before 9:00 am.  It was my Mother calling to the midwest from her California home.  She did not greet me with “Hello.” But her anxious voice said my name, and then,”Is that you?  Are you home?’  Then with audible relief in her voice “Oh, thank God! Are you alright?”   I was puzzled and probably replied something like “Yes, I’m alright. Why wouldn’t I be alright?”

She then said “Don’t you know what is going on?”  I said, “No. What is happening?”  My mother then asked if I had the TV on.  When I said, no, she told me to turn it on.  When I asked her, “what channel?”, she said, “Any channel.”  I watched the attacks in unbelief trying to wrap my mind around what my eyes were seeing…. trying to process the visual information that just didn’t want to process mentally.   To this day, when I watch the documentaries of the attacks, I still cannot totally comprehend the magnitude of the events of that day.

It reminds me of my reaction to the plane crash in Sioux City, Iowa years earlier.    Over and over I watched the news reports trying to imagine the horror inside that plane as the plane tore apart while on fire .  You will recall, many passengers survived finding themselves alive in the tall Iowa cornfield that graced the runway.  The cool moisture of the tall cornstalks may have had a beneficial effect on the flames. Remember that whenever the fuselage of a plane ruptures you are provided another possible exit;  take advantage of it.    But believe me, no Flight Attendant will have to tell you that!

The attacks of 9/11 were very well planned .  I know that they were in the planning for many years and a lot of money was spent in their careful planning.  I  am convinced that I had six of the terrorist/hijackers on at least two different flights of mine and that I personally spoke to at least 4 of them on separate occasions during their reconnaissance flights prior to 9/11.  A chilling retrospective thought.

The first time was out of Florida.   This small-in-stature middle eastern man was a passenger in coach sitting about seat 10A on our MD-80 aircraft.   The flight was moderately light, about half full.  At that time we were still serving drinks and meals in coach!  After we finished the meal service, this man told me that he was in flight school in Florida and that he would like to go look around the cockpit.

When I inquired what type of aircraft he was training in he replied that he was going to be a Captain on a 767.  I found that almost unbelievable knowing how much our Captains have to go through in order to become qualified on the wide-bodied aircraft.  And the years of flying that were needed for them to become senior enough to hold a Captains bid with the major air carriers.

I politely told him that I would check with the Captain, but I knew the answer even before saying I would check with the Captain.   I asked him for his boarding pass so I could present it to the Captain and I remember his unusual name –Hani Hanjour.  I remember the conversation well, because it was such an unusual request.  Sometimes we would allow children to come to the cockpit during flight when there were none of the security cockpit restrictions that are now in place.   After making the Captain aware of the request, I told the man that he was welcome to stop by the cockpit after the flight to visit with the pilots.  He never did stop by the cockpit.  I confirmed that he was Hani Hanjour from the photos I saw later of the terrorists.

The other incident occurred out of Newark, probably in early August, 2001.  You will recall that one of the 9/11 flights departed from the Newark airport.   There were five middle eastern men on my Newark-St. Louis-San Francisco flight;  three in the rear of coach, one near the front of coach, Marwan al Shehhi, and one in First Class.   Same type of airplane – an MD-80.   I was working in coach and three of them had seats across from the back galley, but were very interested in the boarding process. They were standing up in and around the rear galley, blocking the aisle to the rear lavatories and just generally “in our way”.

I recall that there was a lot of conversation ( in Arabic) between them and again, this is behavior out of the ordinary, so I remember it clearly, even several years later.   All of them did not speak English and finally one of them asked me if there were still passengers coming on board.  I told him that we still had twenty minutes before departure.    With a very concerned look on his face,  Mohammed Atta asked me if the “flight was going to be full? ”    I remember replying very matter-of-factly, “We are always full, if not overbooked out of Newark.” He replied something like, “even on Tuesdays?” I said “Every single day, every flight I’ve ever worked out of Newark has been full.”  He was very concerned by this bit of information and it prompted more intense conversation between the three men.

You will recall that 9/11/01  was a beautiful warm late summer Tuesday.   Even during the recon flights during the summer of 2001, they already had the date of September 11th established.

The rest of our conversation went like this:   He (Mohammed Atta) asked me about other American carriers out of Newark that flew to San Francisco.    I told him that I just didn’t have that information and that they would have to check another carrier.    I now firmly believe that it was my comment to Mohammed Atta that prevented the loss of one more American Airlines plane and crew.   I believe that my remark “Every flight I have ever worked out of Newark has been full.” caused the terrorists to rethink their plans and change from American Airlines to United Airlines.  I am sorry though for the terrible loss of crew and passengers of the United Flight 93 that the terrorists hijacked out of Newark.  By the way, United  Flight 93 was also scheduled to fly from Newark to San Francisco which is the same route that my flight took the day I had the terrorists on board for their recon flight.

Mohammed Atta was the ringleader terrorist and the reconnoissance flights in August , 2001 were their means of finalizing their terror plot.

You will recall that September 11, 2001 was a bright and beautiful Tuesday.  This means that they had their plan in place MONTHS before the actual attacks.  He actually asked about the loads on other air carriers and I told him he could check, but I had no way of knowing how full other carriers were on certain flights. You will recall that all of the hijacked flights were carrying very light passenger loads.

One of the men I spoke to on this flight was Mohamed Atta, the terrorist pilot who flew American Airlines Flight 11 into the first World Trade Building Tower.

Hani Hanjour was another of the  terrorist pilots; he flew the American Airlines flight 77  into the Pentagon.

Marwan Al Shehhi was one of the terrorists on my Newark flight’ he was the pilot that crashed the second plane, United 175, into the second world trade tower.

I never used to turn my TV on in the morning.   Now, I turn it on most mornings, just to get the news.

I will fly my large US flag on 9/11.  It is a day we need to honor our country and those who lost their lives.

Will you please fly your flag also?