2001 : Attack on America
At 8:45 a.m. on a clear Tuesday morning, an American Airlines Boeing
767 loaded with 20,000 gallons of jet fuel crashes into the north
tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. The impact left a
gaping, burning hole near the 80th floor of the 110-story skyscraper,
instantly killing hundreds of people and trapping hundreds more in
higher floors. As the evacuation of the tower and its twin got
underway, television cameras broadcasted live images of what initially
appeared to be a freak accident. Then, 18 minutes after the first
plane hit, a second Boeing 767--United Airlines Flight 175--appeared
out of the sky, turned sharply toward the World Trade Center, and
sliced into the south tower at about the 60th floor. The collision
caused a massive explosion that showered burning debris over
surrounding buildings and the streets below. America was under attack.
The attackers were Islamic terrorists from Saudi Arabia and several
other Arab nations. Reportedly financed by Saudi fugitive Osama bin
Laden's al Qaeda terrorist organization, they were allegedly acting in
retaliation for America's support of Israel, its involvement in the
Persian Gulf War, and its continued military presence in the Middle
East. Some of the terrorists had lived in the United States for more
than a year and had taken flying lessons at American commercial flight
schools. Others had slipped into the U.S. in the months before
September 11 and acted as the "muscle" in the operation. The 19
terrorists easily smuggled box-cutters and knives through security at
three East Coast airports and boarded four flights bound for
California, chosen because the planes were loaded with fuel for the
long transcontinental journey. Soon after takeoff, the terrorists
commandeered the four planes and took the controls, transforming the
ordinary commuter jets into guided missiles.
As millions watched in horror the events unfolding in New York,
American Airlines Flight 77 circled over downtown Washington and
slammed into the west side of the Pentagon military headquarters at
9:45 a.m. Jet fuel from the Boeing 757 caused a devastating inferno
that led to a structural collapse of a portion of the giant concrete
building. All told, 125 military personnel and civilians were killed
in the Pentagon along with all 64 people aboard the airliner.
Less than 15 minutes after the terrorists struck the nerve center of
the U.S. military, the horror in New York took a catastrophic turn for
the worse when the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed in
a massive cloud of dust and smoke. The structural steel of the
skyscraper, built to withstand winds in excess of 200 mph and a large
conventional fire, could not withstand the tremendous heat generated
by the burning jet fuel. At 10:30 a.m., the other Trade Center tower
collapsed. Close to 3,000 people died in the World Trade Center and
its vicinity, including a staggering 343 firefighters and paramedics,
23 New York City police officers, and 37 Port Authority police
officers who were struggling to complete an evacuation of the
buildings and save the office workers trapped on higher floors. Only
six people in the World Trade Center towers at the time of their
collapse survived. Almost 10,000 other people were treated for
injuries, many severe.
Meanwhile, a fourth California-bound plane--United Flight 93--was
hijacked about 40 minutes after leaving Newark International Airport
in New Jersey. Because the plane had been delayed in taking off,
passengers on board learned of events in New York and Washington via
cell phone and Airfone calls to the ground. Knowing that the aircraft
was not returning to an airport as the hijackers claimed, a group of
passengers and flight attendants planned an insurrection. One of the
passengers, Thomas Burnett, Jr., told his wife over the phone that "I
know we're all going to die. There's three of us who are going to do
something about it. I love you, honey." Another passenger--Todd
Beamer--was heard saying "Are you guys ready? Let's roll" over an open
line. Sandy Bradshaw, a flight attendant, called her husband and
explained that she had slipped into a galley and was filling pitchers
with boiling water. Her last words to him were "Everyone's running to
first class. I've got to go. Bye."
The passengers fought the four hijackers and are suspected to have
attacked the cockpit with a fire extinguisher. The plane then flipped
over and sped toward the ground at upwards of 500 miles per hour,
crashing in a rural field in western Pennsylvania at 10:10 a.m. All 45
people aboard were killed. Its intended target is not known, but
theories include the White House, the U.S. Capitol, the Camp David
presidential retreat in Maryland, or one of several nuclear power
plants along the eastern seaboard.
At 7 p.m., President George W. Bush, who had spent the day being
shuttled around the country because of security concerns, returned to
the White House. At 9 p.m., he delivered a televised address from the
Oval Office, declaring "Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of
our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of
America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of
American resolve." In a reference to the eventual U.S. military
response he declared: "We will make no distinction between the
terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them."
Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led international effort to oust
the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and destroy Osama bin Laden's
terrorist network based there, began on October 7. Although the
Taliban is no longer in power, fighting in Afghanistan continues, and
Osama bin Laden is still at large.
history.com/tdih.do
1814 : America victorious on Lake Champlain
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5334
1851 : The Christiana Riot
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5335
1973 : Allende dies in coup
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5336
#########################################
767 loaded with 20,000 gallons of jet fuel crashes into the north
tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. The impact left a
gaping, burning hole near the 80th floor of the 110-story skyscraper,
instantly killing hundreds of people and trapping hundreds more in
higher floors. As the evacuation of the tower and its twin got
underway, television cameras broadcasted live images of what initially
appeared to be a freak accident. Then, 18 minutes after the first
plane hit, a second Boeing 767--United Airlines Flight 175--appeared
out of the sky, turned sharply toward the World Trade Center, and
sliced into the south tower at about the 60th floor. The collision
caused a massive explosion that showered burning debris over
surrounding buildings and the streets below. America was under attack.
The attackers were Islamic terrorists from Saudi Arabia and several
other Arab nations. Reportedly financed by Saudi fugitive Osama bin
Laden's al Qaeda terrorist organization, they were allegedly acting in
retaliation for America's support of Israel, its involvement in the
Persian Gulf War, and its continued military presence in the Middle
East. Some of the terrorists had lived in the United States for more
than a year and had taken flying lessons at American commercial flight
schools. Others had slipped into the U.S. in the months before
September 11 and acted as the "muscle" in the operation. The 19
terrorists easily smuggled box-cutters and knives through security at
three East Coast airports and boarded four flights bound for
California, chosen because the planes were loaded with fuel for the
long transcontinental journey. Soon after takeoff, the terrorists
commandeered the four planes and took the controls, transforming the
ordinary commuter jets into guided missiles.
As millions watched in horror the events unfolding in New York,
American Airlines Flight 77 circled over downtown Washington and
slammed into the west side of the Pentagon military headquarters at
9:45 a.m. Jet fuel from the Boeing 757 caused a devastating inferno
that led to a structural collapse of a portion of the giant concrete
building. All told, 125 military personnel and civilians were killed
in the Pentagon along with all 64 people aboard the airliner.
Less than 15 minutes after the terrorists struck the nerve center of
the U.S. military, the horror in New York took a catastrophic turn for
the worse when the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed in
a massive cloud of dust and smoke. The structural steel of the
skyscraper, built to withstand winds in excess of 200 mph and a large
conventional fire, could not withstand the tremendous heat generated
by the burning jet fuel. At 10:30 a.m., the other Trade Center tower
collapsed. Close to 3,000 people died in the World Trade Center and
its vicinity, including a staggering 343 firefighters and paramedics,
23 New York City police officers, and 37 Port Authority police
officers who were struggling to complete an evacuation of the
buildings and save the office workers trapped on higher floors. Only
six people in the World Trade Center towers at the time of their
collapse survived. Almost 10,000 other people were treated for
injuries, many severe.
Meanwhile, a fourth California-bound plane--United Flight 93--was
hijacked about 40 minutes after leaving Newark International Airport
in New Jersey. Because the plane had been delayed in taking off,
passengers on board learned of events in New York and Washington via
cell phone and Airfone calls to the ground. Knowing that the aircraft
was not returning to an airport as the hijackers claimed, a group of
passengers and flight attendants planned an insurrection. One of the
passengers, Thomas Burnett, Jr., told his wife over the phone that "I
know we're all going to die. There's three of us who are going to do
something about it. I love you, honey." Another passenger--Todd
Beamer--was heard saying "Are you guys ready? Let's roll" over an open
line. Sandy Bradshaw, a flight attendant, called her husband and
explained that she had slipped into a galley and was filling pitchers
with boiling water. Her last words to him were "Everyone's running to
first class. I've got to go. Bye."
The passengers fought the four hijackers and are suspected to have
attacked the cockpit with a fire extinguisher. The plane then flipped
over and sped toward the ground at upwards of 500 miles per hour,
crashing in a rural field in western Pennsylvania at 10:10 a.m. All 45
people aboard were killed. Its intended target is not known, but
theories include the White House, the U.S. Capitol, the Camp David
presidential retreat in Maryland, or one of several nuclear power
plants along the eastern seaboard.
At 7 p.m., President George W. Bush, who had spent the day being
shuttled around the country because of security concerns, returned to
the White House. At 9 p.m., he delivered a televised address from the
Oval Office, declaring "Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of
our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of
America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of
American resolve." In a reference to the eventual U.S. military
response he declared: "We will make no distinction between the
terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them."
Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led international effort to oust
the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and destroy Osama bin Laden's
terrorist network based there, began on October 7. Although the
Taliban is no longer in power, fighting in Afghanistan continues, and
Osama bin Laden is still at large.
history.com/tdih.do
1814 : America victorious on Lake Champlain
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5334
1851 : The Christiana Riot
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5335
1973 : Allende dies in coup
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5336
#########################################
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