Did Flight 77 really crash into the Pentagon?

intro • official claim • timeline • undamaged lawn • generator oddity • building damage • inside damage • suspicious debris • crash videos
 alleged hijackers • unusual passengers • pentagon fatalities • conflicting witnesses • debunking sites • theories • performance report • links

The timeline and slow military response...

(To link this page, please use the following address:  http://www.geocities.com/killtown/flight77/timeline.html)

Last updated:  07/05/2006

Why was Flight 77 the only plane that wasn't tracked all the way?

(Graphic source:  washingtonpost.com)

► The flights that crashed

"On the ground, air traffic controllers watching Flight 77's progress westward suddenly lost touch with the plane, which disappeared from radar screens and cut off radio contact." -Seattle Times

What time did the explosion at the Pentagon happen?

► 'Extensive Casualties' in Wake of Pentagon Attack

At about 9:20 a.m., Lt. Col. Art Haubold, a public affairs officer with air force, was in his office on the opposite side of the complex when the plane struck.
"We were sitting there watching the reports on the World Trade Center. All of a sudden, the windows blew in," he said. "We could see a fireball out our window." -Washington Post (09/11/01)

► clock frozen at the time of impact

"A Clock frozen at the time of impact when a hijacked commercial airliner crashed into the Pentagon on Sep. 11. The terrorist attack caused extensive damage to the Pentagon. American Airlines FLT 77 was bound for Los Angeles from Washington Dulles with 58 passengers and 6 crew. All aboard the aircraft were killed, along with 125 people in the Pentagon." - Navy (09/14/01)

► Pentagon helipad clock
"Description: This Skilcraft electric wall clock, which hung in the Pentagon helipad fire station, was knocked to the ground by the impact of American Airlines flight 77 crashing into the Pentagon.
Context: When terrorists flew American Airlines flight 77 into the Pentagon, the crash nearly took the nearby Pentagon helipad firehouse with it. The concussion caused the ceiling of the firehouse to collapse, temporarily trapping firefighter Dennis Young in the fallen debris. The blast also knocked this clock from the wall, freezing it at 9:32. The airplane actually struck the Pentagon at 9:38 am; apparently the clock was six minutes slow." -Smithsonian

► "9:37 a.m.: American Airlines Flight 77, carrying 64 people from Washington to Los Angeles, crashed into the west side of the Pentagon." - Washington Post (09/12/01)

► "At 9:37:46, American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, traveling at approximately 530 miles per hour." -9/11 Commission

► "At approximately 9:38 am EDT (13:38 GMT) American Airlines flight 77 from Dulles to Los Angeles struck west side of the Pentagon. The jet, which was a Boeing 757, penetrated through several of the rings in the Pentagon and started a tremendous fire. The impact produced a seismic signal that was recorded at the USGS station CBN." -University of Arizona/WayBack Machine (09/12/01)

Why was the FAA and NORAD so slow to react to Flight 77?

A timeline of the attacks in the United States on Tuesday (times EDT), according to witnesses, authorities and media reports:

8:10-8:20 a.m.: American Airlines Flight 77 departed Dulles for Los Angeles.

8:38 a.m.: The Federal Aviation Administration notified the military air defense command of a hijacking.

8:43 a.m.: The FAA notified military authorities of a second hijacking.

8:46 a.m.: Flight 11 crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center.

8:53 a.m.: The fighter jets from Otis Air Force Base took off and headed toward New York City.

8:55 a.m.: Flight 77 began turning east, away from its intended course.
(40 min. into flight.)

9:02 a.m.: Flight 175 crashes into south tower of the World Trade Center.

9:10 a.m.: Flight 77 was detected by radar in West Virginia, heading east.
(55 min. into flight.  15 min. from turning off course.)

9:25 a.m.: The FAA notified military air defense that Flight 77 was headed toward Washington.
(1:10 into flight.  30 min. from turning off course.)

9:25 a.m.: Two F-16 fighter jets were scrambled at a Langley Air Force Base in Virginia.
(Langley AFB is over a 150 miles from Pentagon.  Andrews AFB is only 13 miles away.)

9:35 a.m.: The jets from Langley took off.

9:37 a.m.: Flight 77 crashed into the west side of the Pentagon.
(1:22 into flight.  42 min. from turning off course.)

NOTE: Pentagon times for aircraft takeoffs differ from times cited by the FBI for departure. Crash times differ as well.

-Washington Post (9/12/01)

Is this proof NORAD knew Flight 77 hijacked earlier than admitted?

FAA Foot Dragging? The commission investigating the September 11 attacks wants the FAA to turn over all the evidence it has—once and for all

"In hearings and public statements, NORAD and the FAA have given what commission officials describe as incomplete and at times conflicting answers. At a hearing last May, Maj. Gen. Craig McKinley, commander of NORAD’s Continental United States Region, said the Pentagon agency—which is responsible for the nation’s air defenses—had gotten “official” notification from the FAA that American Airlines Flight 77 had been hijacked at 9:24 a.m., 22 minutes after the second plane hit the World Trade towers.
This led to a NORAD directive to scramble F-16 jets from Langley Air Force Base in Virginia to attempt to intercept the aircraft—an order that came too late to prevent the Pentagon crash just a few minutes later.
But commission officials said they recently discovered in the course of interviews with FAA staff that agency officials knew that Flight 77 was off course earlier than that and that there may have been “informal” notice to NORAD; there were even agency tapes of conversations to that effect. Other material, including radar records and internal FAA interview reports and analyses, could also fill in gaps in the time line. What especially angered the commissioners, sources said, was that the FAA had previously indicated that such tapes and records didn’t exist and that it had already turned over all relevant material that the commission needed to do its job." -MSNBC/Newsweek (10/15/03)

Why wasn't the Pentagon warned that an aircraft was heading its way when the FAA had warned the White House that one was?

"But Cheney says when he heard the other officials were safe, he decided to stay at the White House, no matter what.
Cheney was joined by transportation secretary Norm Mineta who remembers hearing the FAA counting down the hijacked jets closing in on the capital.
“Someone came in and said, ‘Mr. Vice President, there’s a plane 50 miles out,’ then he came in and said, ‘It's now 10 miles out, we don’t know where it is exactly, but it’s coming in low and fast,’” says Mineta.
It was American Flight 77. At 9:38 a.m., it exploded into the Pentagon, the first successful attack on Washington since the War of 1812." -CBS (9/10/03)

Since Flight 77 wasn't tracked all the way, couldn't it have been flown somewhere else?

(Map source:  flightexplorer.com)

Why did all hijacked planes turn their transponders off when that act would alert air traffic controllers that something is wrong with their planes and risk the FAA notifying NORAD to intercept their planes?  If their transponders are turned off, wouldn't that mean civil authorities could no longer track their planes, but that the military still could?

"Someone on board Flight 77 had flipped off the transponder, the device that sends a plane's airline identification, flight number, speed and altitude to controllers' radar screens." - Washington Post (9/12/01)

"Top government officials have suggested that American Airlines Flight 77 was originally headed for the White House and possibly circled the Capitol building. CBS News Transportation Correspondent Bob Orr reports that's not what the recorded flight path shows.
"That is not the radar data that we have seen," Fleischer said, adding, "The plane was headed toward the White House." - CBS (9/21/01)

Notice how close Dulles Airport is to the Pentagon.  Why did the alleged terrorists fly Flight 77 all the way out to Kentucky and increase the risk of being intercepted by the military before it supposedly headed all the way back and crashed into the Pentagon?  Why didn't they quickly turn towards the Pentagon shortly after taking off?

(Map source:  time.com [Taken from:  emperors-clothes.com])

Why didn't these news services even map a flight path for Flight 77?

(Map source:  cnn.com)

(Map source:  bbc)

This news service has Flight 77 flying all the way out to Kansas!

(Map source:  detnews.com)

Isn't it odd that all the hijacked cross country flights on 9/11 only averaged 27% full?

"But witnesses soon identified the aircraft that smashed into the Pentagon as an American flight, and then as Flight 77, which was unusually light on passengers this day." - Washington Post (9/21/01)

"The numbers appear out-of-whack, thankfully. And so, a lingering question is why the passenger loads on the four planes hijacked in U.S. skies are being described by industry officials as "very, very low.''
Many investigators suspect the terrorists at the very least shopped for flights with low passenger loads, making it easier for them -- presumably armed only with knives and box cutters -- to prevent passenger uprisings.
"They wanted the numbers to be on their side.''
And they were, staggeringly so.
Three of the transcontinental flights departed for the West Coast with at least two-thirds of the seats empty. Only 37 of the 182 seats were occupied -- including four by hijackers, at least two in first class -- as United Airlines' Flight 93 left Newark for San Francisco.
Through July, airlines in the United States reported flights on average were 71 percent capacity this year.
All four of the hijacked flights had passenger loads significantly down in comparison with similar flights in June, the second quarter this year and last September -- according to statistics provided by the Department of Transportation.
They acted on a Tuesday, normally one of the slowest air traffic days. And just after Labor Day, when summer travel eases considerably.
They boarded the flights in teams of five. The exception was the four aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which authorities believe crashed in a Pennsylvania field after passengers took on the hijackers.
The hijackers had apparently finalized their plans at least three weeks before the attacks when they began purchasing tickets for the flights, according to an FBI document provided to German police.
On Tuesday, a week after the hijackings, the only flight still flying near its former departure time was the United Airlines flight from Boston to Los Angeles. A check on the airline's web site the night before found 62 seats reserved in coach, alone -- compared to the 51 passengers and five hijackers who left Boston the morning of September 11.
"They were very low loads, especially when we only had 37 passengers on the flight that went down near Pittsburgh,'' said Liz Meagher, a United Airlines spokesperson. "I'm sure we are looking at this as a blessing and I'm sure it is being investigated as well.''
Specifics about the number of no-shows for the flights, as well as the passenger load history of the flights, have been turned over to the FBI, Meagher said.
Industry sources said post-Labor Day isn't normally a strong time and air traffic is off this year, but passenger loads on the four flights are off about 20 percent from similar routes last September.
Hotard said the airline hasn't detected any unusual booking activity on its two flights, dismissing speculation that the hijackers bought a large number of unused tickets.
He confirmed that the hijackers aboard the American flights were seated in first class, adding American and United Airlines were likely targeted because they're the primary transcontinental carriers.
"As to why they choose those two airlines, American is certainly a big bull's-eye out there, if you want to strike America. They picked the world's two largest carriers and we're out there with American spread all over and the American eagle on the tail.'' -CNN (9/20/01)

Why didn't the military scramble jets out of Andrews AFB which is only 13 miles away from the Pentagon to protect the Washington D.C. area immediately after the 2nd WTC crash at 9:03 am?

"More puzzling, there were 45 minutes between air traffic controllers losing contact with the third airliner, which took off from Dulles airport just outside Washington, and its crash on to the Pentagon." -Telegraph UK (9/16/01)

"The two F-16s that deployed to intercept American Airlines Flight 77 did not get off the ground until just 2 minutes before the plane crashed into the Pentagon. They were about 130 miles from their target. The District of Columbia National Guard maintained fighter planes at Andrews Air Force Base, only about 15 miles from the Pentagon, but those planes were not on alert and not deployed." -USA TODAY (9/16/01)

"Within minutes of the attack American forces around the world were put on one of their highest states of alert - Defcon 3, just two notches short of all-out war - and F-16s from Andrews Air Force Base were in the air over Washington DC." -Telegraph UK (9/16/01)

Approx. 13 miles between Andrews AFB and the Pentagon.

(Map source:  expedia.com)

Satellite aerial map of D.C.

"The U.S. military has never shot down a civilian plane to prevent it from crashing in a populated area, and Pentagon officials believe there is only the remotest chance they will have to give that order in the future.
Bacon said the Pentagon has no written instructions for shooting down manned civilian planes." -CNN (10/26/99)

"Until Tuesday, the fighter base on alert closest to the Pentagon was 130 miles away at Langley Air Force Base, Va. That was too distant for fighter jets to intercept the hijacked jetliner before it crashed into the Pentagon.
Andrews Air Force Base, home to Air Force One, is only 15 miles away from the Pentagon, but it had no fighters assigned to it. Defense officials won't say whether that has changed." -USA TODAY (9/16/01)

"F-16 fighter aircraft from the D.C. Air National Guard scrambled over Washington and could be seen flying over the Pentagon - only heightening the anxiety for some, who had heard rumors that a second hijacked plane was headed toward the Pentagon. Quigley said he couldn't comment on those rumors, or on reports that U.S. fighter planes had fired upon the jet before it struck the Pentagon." -Newsday.com (9/12/01)

Andrews Air Force Base (Summer 2001) (Archived with WayBack Machine.)

Air National Guard Readiness Center
The Air National Guard Readiness Center develops, manages and directs Air National Guard programs which implement national-level policies set by the Department of Defense, the Air Force and the National Guard Bureau. It also performs operational and technical functions to ensure combat readiness of ANG units and is a channel of communication between the NGB and the states on ANG operational activities.

113th Wing (DCANG)
The 113th now flies the F-16C Fighting Falcon and only recently the C-21 Learjet and C-22 Boeing 727, as a result of the DCANG unit reorganization when the 201st Airlift Squadron became part of the wing in October 1995.
Training for air combat and operational airlift for national defense is the 113th's primary mission. However, as part of its dual mission, the 113th provides capable and ready response forces for the District of Columbia in the event of a natural disaster or civil emergency. Members also assist local and federal law enforcement agencies in combating drug trafficking in the District of Columbia.
At Andrews, the 113th Wing, its associated DCANG units, and their people are full partners with the active Air Force.

FAA
Federal Aviation Administration personnel at Andrews are responsible for the airway facilities and air traffic control over and around Andrews.
There are 32 air traffic controllers and 25 airway facilities technicians assigned to Andrews. The FAA provides services for approximately 160,000 aircraft operations each year at Andrews, including movements of the president (Air Force One), vice president (Air Force Two), foreign heads of state and all types of aircraft from the Air Force, Navy, Marines, Army, Coast Guard and their reserve forces, as well as civil aircraft and commercial airliners.
Their mission is the safe movement of air traffic in the nation's airspace.

Naval Air Facility
Naval Air Facility, Washington, D.C., is a Naval Air Reserve training facility operating under the commander, Naval Reserve Force.
A variety of Naval aircraft can be seen on NAF's flight line. Regular sightings include P-3 Orions, C-20 Gulfstreams, C-130 Hercules, T-39 Sabreliners and F/A-18 Hornets.

Marine Aircraft Group 49, Det. A
In the best tradition of the Marine Corps, a "few good men and women" support two combat-ready reserve units at Andrews AFB.
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 321, a Marine Corps Reserve squadron, flies the sophisticated F/A-18 Hornet. Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 49, Detachment A, provides maintenance and supply functions necessary to maintain a force in readiness.

District of Columbia Air National Guard - 2004

The DC Air National Guard is located on Andrews Air Force Base, in Camp Springs, Maryland. We are home to the 113th Wing: the 121 Fighter Squadron (including the F-16 Fighting Falcons) and the 201 Airlift Squadron; the 121 Weather Squadron; and the 231 Combat Communications Squadron.

The DC Air National Guard has called Andrews AFB home since the unit's post-war reorganization in 1946. We draw our members from throughout the District of Columbia metropolitan area, as well as from more distant points in Maryland, Virginia, and neighboring states.

The unit has about 1,400 people, most of whom spend one weekend each month at Andrews for scheduled training. A smaller, full-time contingent maintains the day-to-day operations as a framework that supports the full-time flying training mission.

Throughout its existence, the men and women of the DC Air National Guard have been and will continue to be a vital part of the community and the total force. They stand ready to respond to the needs of the District of Columbia--and the nation--should the need arise.

Were these three F-16's from Andrews AFB flown 180 miles away from the Pentagon for a routine training mission, or were they really flown away to purposely leave the D.C. area unguarded?

"The Andrews-based 121st Fighter Sqdn. was not standing alert on Sept. 11, because the District of Columbia Air National Guard (DCANG) unit was not assigned to the North American Aerospace Defense Command air defense force. Norad had already scrambled three F-16s from their alert base at Langley AFB, Va., but they were about 12 min. from Washington when the Pentagon was struck at 9:37 a.m.
The 121st squadron's day had started normally. Three F-16s were flying an air-to-ground training mission on a range in North Carolina, 180 naut. mi. away.
Soon thereafter, the Secret Service called back, asking whether the squadron could get fighters airborne. The unit's maintenance section was notified to get several F-16s armed and ready to fly. Anticipating such an order, Col. Don C. Mozley, the 113th Logistics Group commander, had already ordered his weapons officer to "break out the AIM-9s and start building them up." The missiles had to be transported from a bunker on the other side of the base, which would take a while.
Another call from the Secret Service commanded, "Get in the air now!" Almost simultaneously, a call from someone else in the White House declared the Washington area "a free-fire zone". That meant we were given authority to use force, if the situation required it, in defense of the nation's capital, its property and people," Sasseville said.
Maj. Billy Hutchison and his wingmen had just landed after being recalled from a training mission in North Carolina. When Hutchison checked in via radio, Thompson told him to take off immediately." -Aviation Week (9/09/02)

Why was a C-130 military aircraft, that had just taken off from Andrews AFB, following directly above Flight 77 as to prevent two planes from appearing on radar right before it reportedly crashed, why did it make a pass through the smoke plume at the Pentagon, and is it just a coincidence this same plane was the first to spot the reported crash of Flight 93 in Pennsylvania also?

"Her brother, Wheelhouse, of Virginia Beach, spotted the planes first. The second plane looked similar to a C- 130 transport plane, he said. He believes it flew directly above the American Airlines jet, as if to prevent two planes from appearing on radar while at the same time guiding the jet toward the Pentagon.
As the hijacked jet started its descent, "it's like it stepped on its gas pedal," Wheelhouse said. "As soon as he did that, the second plane banked off to the west."
Wheelhouse's account of a second plane is unlike everything else that has been reported about the attack. Some initial reports on television said a second airliner might be headed for the Pentagon, but authorities later dismissed that. A Norfolk-based FBI agent interviewed Wheelhouse Wednesday evening.
A possible explanation for the second plane could be a plane landing at nearby Ronald Reagan National Airport. The Pentagon is between the cemetery and the airport. But Wheelhouse insists he was not confused by other air traffic.
After the attack on the Pentagon, reporters in Washington saw Air Force planes patrolling the skies over the capital.
Wheelhouse said it's possible the second plane was a military plane, but the military has not said it had a plane shadowing the hijacked jet." - Daily Press/Newport News (09/14/01) [Reprinted at:  cooperativeresearch.org]

"FBI spokesmen say they have not heard about it, although both Knowles and Keith Wheelhouse, the Virginia Beach man, were interviewed by FBI agents. A Pentagon official said late Friday no other plane was flying with the jetliner. But he said it was possible a military plane was in the area at the time of the attack.

At the same time, Wheelhouse and his sister, Pam Young, who lives in Surry, were preparing to leave a funeral at Arlington National Cemetery, which is less than a mile from the Pentagon, when they watched the jet approach and slam into the Pentagon. Both of them, as well as at least one other person at the funeral, insist that there was another plane flying near the hijacked jet.
Wheelhouse said the second plane looked like it may have been a C- 130 transport plane, but the other three witnesses say they're not sure what the plane looked like." - Daily Press/Newport News (09/15/01) [Reprinted at:  cooperativeresearch.org]

"9:25 a.m. - FAA notifies military defense command that a hijacked airliner, American Flight 77 from Dulles, is headed toward Washington.
Two F-16 fighters get orders to take off from Langley Air Force Base, about 130 miles south of the Pentagon.
C-130 transport plane at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington is asked to try to make visual contact with the hijacked jet." -USA Today (09/16/01)

"At 9.25 the controller observes the plane moving towards Washington. Eight minutes later, the US secret service is informed and the aircraft is observed completing a right 360-degree turn, just south of the Pentagon. At 9.36 the national airport instructs a military C130 (Golfer 06) that has just departed Andrews air force base to intercept the flight and identify it. At 9.38 AA77 crashes into the south-west side of the Pentagon." -Guardian (10/17/01)

"A Minnesota guard crew witnessed hijackers crashing American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, and were also the first to report the smoke of United Airlines Flight 93 minutes after it went down in Pennsylvania.
Lt. Col. Steve O'Brien was at the controls of the C-130 aircraft on that day. His crew had just departed Andrews AFB on what he thought would be a normal flight home to Minnesota. But what he and his crew witnessed defies odds and will forever be woven into the fabric of the history of the infamous day.
"You just wonder how you could be in those two geographic locations at those exact times and witness those events," O'Brien told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS.
On September 11, 2001, O'Brien's plane had just taken off when air traffic controllers asked him to identify and follow Flight 77, which was suspected of being a hijacked plane. O'Brien saw that plane pass directly in front of his Minnesota National Guard C-130 aircraft.
"We told them we did have it in sight, and they asked us to follow the suspect aircraft." O'Brien remembered. "In 20 years of flying I'd never been asked to do that, especially following a commercial jetliner."
A few minutes later, O'Brien saw the first horrific sight of his day: American Airlines Flight 77 had hit the Pentagon.
"We were having a hard time keeping up with that aircraft, but we saw the explosion on the ground."
After that, O'Brien and his crew headed west toward home. But over Pennsylvania, air traffic controllers asked him and his crew if they saw another aircraft in trouble.
The crew of the C-130 saw the smoke from United Airlines Flight 93, which had crashed just 2 minutes earlier.
"You feel like you are a part of history," O'Brien said. "Even if you were not directly involved, you had a chance to witness it." -5 Eyewitness News (12/25/04)

"Lt. Col. Steve O'Brien started his day at the controls of a Minnesota National Guard C-130 cargo plane. He and his crew were heading back to the Twin Cities after moving military supplies around the Caribbean. About 9:30 a.m., O'Brien throttled the lumbering plane down a runway at Andrews Air Force Base, just southeast of the District of Columbia.
"When we took off, we headed north and west and had a beautiful view of the Mall," he said. "I noticed this airplane up and to the left of us, at 10 o'clock. He was descending to our altitude, four miles away or so. That's awful close, so I was surprised he wasn't calling out to us.
"It was like coming up to an intersection. When air traffic control asked me if we had him in sight, I told him that was an understatement - by then, he had pretty much filled our windscreen. Then he made a pretty aggressive turn so he was moving right in front of us, a mile and a half, two miles away. I said we had him in sight, then the controller asked me what kind of plane it was.
"That caught us up, because normally they have all that information. The controller didn't seem to know anything."
O'Brien reported that the plane was either a 757 or 767 and its silver fuselage meant it was probably an American Airlines jet. "They told us to turn and follow that aircraft - in 20-plus years of flying, I've never been asked to do something like that. With all of the East Coast haze, I had a hard time picking him out.
"The next thing I saw was the fireball. It was huge. I told Washington the airplane has impacted the ground. Shook everyone up pretty good. I told them the approximate location was close to the Potomac. I figured he'd had some in-flight emergency and was trying to get back on the ground to Washington National. Suddenly, I could see the outline of the Pentagon. It was horrible. I told Washington this thing has impacted the west side of the Pentagon."
O'Brien asked the controller whether he should set up a low orbit around the building but was told to get out of the area as quickly as possible. "I took the plane once through the plume of smoke and thought if this was a terrorist attack, it probably wasn't a good idea to be flying through that plume."
He flew west, not exactly sure where he was supposed to land. Somewhere over western Pennsylvania, O'Brien looked down at a blackened, smoldering field. "I hoped it was just a tire fire or something, but when I checked with Cleveland center, he told me he'd just lost a guy off the scope pretty close to where we saw it.
He finally landed at the Youngstown, Ohio, airport." - Highbeam.com/Star Tribune (09/11/02) [Reprinted at:  cooperativeresearch.org]

Museum features Air Guard's history and role in the war on terror

"A video tells the story of flight Gopher 06, a Twin Cities-based C-130 leaving Washington, D.C. the morning of 9/11. An emotional looking Maj. Robert Schumacher describes how air traffic controllers directed the crew to follow American Airlines flight 77, shortly before it crashed into the Pentagon. The Air Guard crew wasn't aware of the attacks in New York.

Schumacher thought the airliner must be in trouble: "that the pilots were really just trying to fly the airplane, and get it on the ground safely," Schumacher says in the videotape. "I remember looking out my right side windows, kind of down on it, and just having the hairs on the back of my neck standing up and having this sinking feeling that something was going to happen. I remember thinking, 'God, just let them land safely.'"

In a recent interview, Lt. Col. Steve O'Brien, commander of Gopher 06, says he remembers seeing a big explosion. He says this fireball was quite a bit bigger than the one he'd seen when a classmate crashed.

"I just remember telling Washington, 'Washington, that airplane has hit the ground.' And right away, I got real upset inside, because you know it was like a fellow aviator had just crashed an airplane in front of me again, or aviators, in this case," says O'Brien. "It's like a part of you dies when somebody in your own business has a mishap like that."

Through the haze the shape of the Pentagon emerged where the explosion had occurred. The crew alerted the controllers and tuned in a newscast using navigation radios.

"The first thing we heard on there was 'We're now hearing about a second airplane hitting the World Trade Center.' That was not what we were expecting to hear. We were expecting to hear about an airplane impacting the Pentagon, and they haven't even mentioned that yet," says O'Brien. "They're just talking about a second airplane hitting the World Trade Center, and the light goes on, and it's like, 'Oh my God, the nation's under attack!'"

Not long after, Gopher 06 was in the vicinity, and reported the smoke when the fourth plane crashed into a Pennsylvania field.

O'Brien says the emotion can still well up and surprise him occasionally, and there was another surprise--the story turned up on the Internet as part of a conspiracy theory maintaining that no plane hit the Pentagon.

"To be called a liar and a part of a government conspiracy kind of affected me too, because it just scares you a little bit that there might be some kooky people out there that might want to do harm to you or your family because they feel you're part of some government conspiracy," says O'Brien." -MN Public Radio (05/31/04)

Download video interview of Lt. Col. Steve O'Brien

(To download using Explorer, click right mouse button and select "Save Target As".  For Firefox, click link and in pop-up box select "Save to Disk".)

Fact sheet on C-130 Hercules

How was this C-130 able to take off from Andrews AFB when the FAA issued a ground stop for all planes, including military, five minutes before it took off?

"Lt. Col. Steve O'Brien started his day at the controls of a Minnesota National Guard C-130 cargo plane. He and his crew were heading back to the Twin Cities after moving military supplies around the Caribbean. About 9:30 a.m., O'Brien throttled the lumbering plane down a runway at Andrews Air Force Base, just southeast of the District of Columbia." - Highbeam.com/Star Tribune (09/11/02) [Reprinted at:  cooperativeresearch.org]

"At 9:25, Garvey, in an historic and admirable step, and almost certainly after getting an okay from the White House, initiated a national ground stop, which forbids takeoffs and requires planes in the air to get down as soon as reasonable. The order, which has never been implemented since flying was invented in 1903, applied to virtually every single kind of machine that can takeoff — civilian, military, or law enforcement." -Time (09/14/01)

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