“We’ve Been Told There’s Another Plane in the Air and It’s Heading Here”

It has been twenty-five years since the tragic events of 9/11, and there is a sense that the nation has failed to rise to the challenge of addressing politics and foreign policy with greater seriousness. President George W. Bush had urged Americans not to allow the attacks to fuel Islamophobia, but now, this bigotry seems to be more widespread, particularly among Republican politicians and right-wing figures.

Five years ago, I wrote a remembrance piece to reflect on the lessons we should have learned from that day and to honor the passengers of Flight 93, who courageously defended their plane, potentially saving many lives.

I vividly recall the morning of 9/11. Walking past the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill, chaos reigned as Senate staffers flooded into the street. A woman's frantic cries rang out: "They're attacking, they're attacking!" I hurried to my modest Nation magazine bureau office, turning on an old black-and-white television set.

The news was grim: the towers were burning, people were jumping from windows, and the Pentagon had been hit. I tried to contact my wife and family in New York City but couldn't get through. Emails and phone calls were inundated with news of the attacks, but there was no indication that it would affect the day's print issue.

As I raced outside into the pandemonium, I saw Capitol Hill officers milling about without any clear direction. Rumors were rampant: some claimed President George W. Bush was dead, while others reported explosions throughout the city. At the edge of Capitol grounds, I spotted Senator Robert Byrd, the president pro tempore of the Senate.

He seemed lost and uncertain on how to proceed as he was accompanied by a single aide. They approached a Capitol Hill officer who informed them there was another plane in the air and it was heading towards Washington. "Get in a car and drive as far as you can from here right now," the officer advised.

Senator Byrd, along with his single aide, was taken away by the officer. I questioned the officer, asking if indeed there was another plane coming their way, to which he simply replied, "That's what they're telling us." I returned to my office, a building housing offices for nonprofit groups and residential apartments occupied by former and current legislators.

I warned everyone I could, informing them about the plane's approach. The officer's words echoed in my mind: "Good luck," before he disappeared. I was the final warning to the occupants of the apartment building, which housed former Senator Russ Feingold and many others. I passed along the officer's information and stepped out to meet my car, desperate to get away from Capitol Hill as quickly as possible.

As Flight 93, the fourth plane, crashed a few minutes after 10 a.m., likely into an empty field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the passengers on board, having heard of the attacks, attempted to take control of the plane to thwart the al-Qaeda hijackers. This action, as noted in the 9/11 Commission's final report, prevented an even worse attack on the Capitol or the White House.

The Boeing 757 was just 20 minutes flying time away from Washington when these brave passengers intervened. Their actions saved countless lives, preventing potential decapitation of a branch of the US government or destruction of the American symbol. This incident highlighted that the United States had been blind to a grave threat and was utterly unprepared.

While many indicators existed that an attack could occur, there had been a total failure of imagination. The 9/11 Commission report concluded that the most significant failure was not connecting the dots that warned of such an attack.