Essay On The September 11, 2001 Terrorists Attacks

The September 11, 2001 Terrorists Attacks

On September 11, 2001, a group of twenty Middle Eastern terrorists attacked the United States. These Middle Easterners were a part of the terrorist group al-Qaeda, headed by the known terrorist Osama bin Laden. In groups of four, five, and six, the terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners and intended to fly them into four different important buildings. Only three of the hijacked aircrafts made it to their intended destination. However, even though only three of the four airplanes hit their targets, almost 3,000 people were killed in the attacks. The events of September 11, 2001 were a series of tragic attacks that ended in immeasurable death and heartache.

The first commercial aircraft that was hijacked by al-Qaeda terrorists, was American Airlines Flight 11, or more commonly known as Flight 11. Flight 11 took off from Boston’s Logan Airport at 7:40 a.m. and was gaining height by 8:00 a.m. Once the plane was in the sky, the five Middle Eastern terrorists, an Egyptian and four Saudis, quickly took over by storming the cockpit with knives and Mace. By 8:13 a.m., Flight 11 was nonresponsive. Just over half an hour after the first airliner was hijacked, at 8:46 a.m., Flight 11 hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, New York.

At 8:15 a.m., around the time that Flight 11 was unresponsive, United Airlines Flight 175 took off from Boston. Everything was running smoothly until Captain Saracini, the pilot of United Flight 175, was told Flight 11 was missing. He saw the plane and was told to stay out of its way because it was unresponsive. Saracini received a confusing transmission from Flight 11 that indicated it had been hijacked. Once he reported the suspicious tra...

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...umber of casualties would be significantly higher, but many bodies were found in pieces. The rubble yielded up to 21,744 separate human remains, many of which did not get identified. The North Tower had the highest number of casualties, resting at 1,466, while the South Tower had only 624. Not only did the United States suffer from these attacks, two dozen other countries also suffered, because at least 511 nationals were also killed.

September 11, 2001 was a dreadful day that lives in the hearts and minds of Americans throughout the years. Because of the terrorist group al-Qaeda, headed by terrorist Osama bin Laden, the United States lost almost 3,000 innocent lives. Families were torn apart and lives were lost. “An American apocalypse, a catastrophe with consequences-in blood spilled and global political upheaval-that continue to this day,” (Summers and Swan 87).