Where did the 9/11 planes take off from? What was their route?
The flights took off in US airspace before being commandeered by terrorists, using the vehicles to target some of the country’s most famous buildings.
On September 11, 2001, four US passenger planes, complete with a cabin crew and passengers, were hijacked not long after taking off from their respective airports by al-Qaeda in the United States.
Two of those four planes were flown into the Twin Towers in New York City as suicide attacks. The first plane crashed into the North Tower at 8:46 ET, and the second plane crashed into the South Tower soon after at 9:03 ET.
The third plane hit the Pentagon in Washington D.C. in a suicide attack at 9:37 ET. The final plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. In an act of heroism, despite knowing their likely fate, passengers and crew of the fourth plane, Flight 93, mounted an insurrection against their captures. All of the passengers died in the final crash after attempting to regain control of the plane from the hijackers. While there is still doubts, it has been reported that flight 93 was likely headed towards the US Capitol.
2,996 people were killed.
Where were the 9/11 flights headed?
Flight 93 was a regularly scheduled flight from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco, California. On September 11, the flight had 33 passengers and 7 crew members. The plane was delayed in Newark due to flight traffic that morning, but eventually took off and was overtaken by the hijackers around 40 minutes into the flight.
Passengers and crew members on the flight contacted officials and family members on the ground to inform them of the hijacking. A husband of one of the flight attendants on board remembers hearing, “everyone is running to first class.” It’s understood that while the passengers tried to enter the cockpit, the hijackers chose to crash the plane into a rural field in Pennsylvania.
American Airlines flight 11 was headed to Los Angeles from Logan Airport taking off at 7:59 AM with 76 passengers, 11 crew members, and 5 additional hijackers. The flight crashed into the Twin Towers at 8:46 ET.
United Airlines flight 175 was also heading to Los Angeles from Logan Airport taking off at 8:14 ET. The plane went on to crash into the South Tower at 9:03 ET.
American Airlines flight 77 was headed to Los Angeles International Airport from Washington Dulles International Airport taking off at 8:20 ET. This plane went on to crash into the West wall of the Pentagon at 9:37 ET.