Watching Sept. 11 on a Flight Screen
Aug. 12 -- Air traffic controllers were among the first to know on Sept. 11 that something was horribly wrong. One by one, they lost contact with the hijacked planes and then watched on radar as they headed toward their targets.
For those agonizing minutes — beginning at 8:46 a.m., when American Airlines Flight 11 hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center — the head of a New York air traffic control center watched helplessly as United Airlines Flight 175 headed for the South Tower.
"For those 11 minutes, I knew, we knew what was going to happen and that was difficult," said Mike McCormick today as he and his fellow regional air managers offered the first detailed chronology of Sept. 11 from the perspective inside the nation's flight control towers.
"My priority at that time was to ensure that everybody understood that it wasn't just a single event, that there wasn't just one aircraft involved … and to be prepared for any eventuality. … That 11 minutes was difficult, but it was full of activity," McCormick said.
As soon as the second tower was hit, McCormick acted quickly: He issued an unprecedented order to clear the skies over the Northeast.
"At one time it was the hardest decision to make and at the same time it was the easiest decision to make," he said.
It was a decision — like virtually all others that fateful morning — made without consulting superiors, and without the knowledge of the White House.
'You Had to Take Action'
At 9:26 a.m. the next order came from the Federal Aviation Administration's command center: No more planes were to take off anywhere in the nation.
"You didn't have time to weigh consequences," said Dave Canoles, the FAA's director of emergency operations. "You had to take action."
Meanwhile, controllers were tracking American Flight 77 as it sped toward Washington. At about 9:40 a.m., they lost radar contact.
"My colleague came back in the room and reported that there was smoke coming from the Pentagon," Canoles recalled. "Pretty awful moment."
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