Friday, September 15, 2006

American Bravery: United 93 Fought Back


On September 11, 2001, United Airlines Boeing 757-222, (Flight 93) was one of four planes hijacked as part of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. It was the only one of the four planes that did not reach its intended target, instead crashing in an empty field just outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania, about 150 miles (240 km) northwest of Washington, D.C. The 9/11 Commission (through testimony, tapes of passengers' phone calls, and the flight data recorders recovered from the crash) determined that crew and passengers, alerted through phone calls to loved ones, had attempted to subdue the hijackers.

It is accepted that the destination was Washington, D.C., with the White House and more likely the United State Capitol as targets. The Commission concluded that the hijackers crashed the plane to keep the crew and passengers from gaining control. (Wiki)

The Shanksville Flight 93 Memorial

The Universal film "United 93" (view trailer here as well)
The filmmakers donated a percentage of the opening weekend proceeds to the Flight 93 memorial near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The actual amount donated turned out to be $1.15 million.

The Flight that Fought Back is a docudrama produced by the Discovery Channel about United Airlines Flight 93. The program debuted in the United States on September 11, 2005. It proved to be highly popular when it debuted on the fourth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It eventually made its way across the Atlantic to the U.K. where it was aired on Channel Five on Thursday 5 January 2006.

The hijackers of United 93 were reported to be: Ziad Jarrah (Lebanese), pilot Ahmed al-Haznawi (Saudi Arabian) Ahmed al-Nami (Saudi Arabian) Saeed al-Ghamdi (Saudi Arabian). They used knives and the threat of a bomb to take over the cockpit.

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