September 11, 2001 will go down in the history books as a day of infamy, when murderous terrorists made a sudden attack on the USA, killing in excess of 6000 people (recent numbers indicate ~4000 total for 9-11 including D.C. and in Pennsylvania). That's more than twice as many people as those who died when Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941.


Time Line for Sept. 11

Times are EDT and reflect actual, rather than scheduled departure times of flights.

7:59 a.m. American Airlines flight 11 takes off from Boston's Logan International Airport.
8:14 a.m. United Airlines flight 175 takes off from Boston's Logan International Airport.
8:20 a.m. American Airlines flight 11 stops transmitting IFF beacon signal while over the Hudson River.
8:20 a.m. American Airlines flight 77 departs Dulles International Airport near Washington.
8:38 a.m. Boston air traffic center notifies NORAD that American Airlines flight 11 has been hijacked.
8:43 a.m. FAA notifies NORAD that United Airlines flight 175 has been hijacked.
8:44 a.m. Otis Air National Guard Base in Mass. orders to fighters scrambled.
8:48 a.m. American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 en route from Boston's Logan Airport to Los Angeles International with 92 people onboard, slams into the north tower, 1 World Trade Center.
9:05 a.m. Approximately 18 minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175, also a Boeing 767 enroot from Boston to Los Angeles with 65 people onboard, hits the south tower, 2 World Trade Center.
9:21 a.m. New York City Port Authority closes all bridges and tunnels in New York City.
9:24 a.m. President Bush calls the crashes "an apparent terrorist attack on our country."
9:32 a.m. New York Stock Exchange closed.
9:40 a.m. The FAA orders the entire nationwide air traffic system shut down. All flights at U.S. airports are stopped.
9:43 a.m. American Airlines Flight 77, a Boeing 757 enroute from Dulles Airport outside Washington to LAX with 58 passengers and six crew members, crashes into the Pentagon. One of the building's five sides collapses.
9:45 a.m. The White House is evacuated.
9:59 a.m. The south tower of the World Trade Center collapses in a plume of ash and debris.
10:00 a.m. United Airlines Flight 93, a Boeing 757 en route from Newark, NJ, to San Francisco with 38 passengers and seven crew members, crashes just north of the Somerset County Airport, about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. Shortly before impact, a passenger called on his cell phone from a locked bathroom: "We are being hijacked, we are being hijacked!" At this time there was concern the plane was headed to Camp David.
10:24 a.m. The FAA reports that all inbound transatlantic flights are to be diverted to Canada.
10:28 a.m. The World Trade Center's north tower collapses.
12:15 p.m. The United States closes some border crossings with Canada and Mexico.
1:02 p.m. New York Mayor Rudolph Guiliani orders an evacuation of Manhattan south of Canal Street.
1:04 p.m. In a speech at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, President Bush announces that security measures are being taken and says: "Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts."
1:44 p.m. The Navy dispatches aircraft carriers and guided missile destroyers to New York and Washington. Around the country, fighters, airborne radar and refueling planes scramble. The North American Aerospace Defense Command goes to its highest alert.
1:44 p.m. President Bush leaves Barksdale Air Force Base for Nebraska's Offutt Air Force Base, home to the U.S. Strategic Command.
4:30 p.m. President Bush leaves Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska for Washington.
4:45 p.m. The City of New York announces that 200 firefighters have been killed and 78 police officers are missing.
5:20 p.m. Seven World Trade Center, a 47-story tower, collapses from ancillary damage.



When putting together this page I admit to having to do some research to find the above "time line". On Sept 11, I was working at one of our local schools. When the first reports came out of what was happening the entire staff was alerted and buzzing, tears were shed and prayers lifted. My mind I'm afraid was on one thing and one thing only - my second oldest son. With "America Under Attack" it was only a matter of minutes before the military would be put into action - including my son serving in the US Air Force. All I could think at that time was the memory of a prior phone call I had received "Mom I can't tell you where I'm going but if there's an emergency call ********!" Within minutes I emailed him from work, the minute I could leave for lunch I went home (3 miles) to check the answering machine. Only to find it not working. I was a wreck now - what if he had already called? When would I hear from him again? I lifted prayers for my son, then prayers for all the military personnel. What a selfish, self-center, fool I was. That was when I went into tears - the reality of the many deaths already known of, the 1000s and 1000s of families of those killed, missing, or injured. I thank the Lord now that there were others who didn't delay in praying for the needs of others - comfort, protection, healing. I never got the dreaded call but lifted extra prayers for other service members.




God Bless America




Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. ~ Jefferson


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