Flight 93: The Story, the Aftermath, and the Legacy of American Courage on 9/11

by Tom McMillan, Governor Tom Ridge (Foreword by)

Overview

United Airlines Flight 93, which took off from Newark Airport the morning of September 11th, 2001, is perhaps the most famous flight in modern American history: We know of the passenger uprising, but there’s so much more to the story besides its harrowing and oft-told climax. Amazingly, the definitive account of this seminal event has yet to be written. 
The book offers the most complete account of what actually took place aboard Flight 93 – from its delayed takeoff in Newark to the moment it plunged upside-down at 563 miles per hour into an open field in rural Somerset County, Pennsylvania. Flight 93 provides a riveting and complete narrative of the lead-up, event, and aftermath of the flight, based on interviews, oral histories, personal tours of the crash site and evidence recently made public. It examines the lead-up to that horrific morning; the stories of the victims who were launched into the center of history; the revolt that saved untold amounts of carnage on the ground and likely, the US Capitol; the eyewitnesses and first responders who rushed to the crash scene; the impact on family members; the effort to uncover evidence at the site; and the legacy the story leaves for future generations. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781493014217
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	09/11/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	515,596
File size:	14 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Tom McMillan has spent a lifetime in media and communications – as a newspaper sports writer for the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette, among others, as a radio talk-show host, and for the past 17 years as Vice President of Communications for the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. He also serves on the board of directors of Pittsburgh’s Heinz History Center, on the marketing committee of the Gettysburg Foundation, as a tour guide for the Civil War Room at Carnegie Library, as an adjunct professor of media and marketing at Point Park University and as a volunteer at  the Flight 93 National Memorial.

Table of Contents

In Memoriam vi

Foreword Tom Ridge vii

Author's Note ix

Preface xii

Chapter 1 Morning 1

Chapter 2 Mastermind 10

Chapter 3 Forming a Cell 18

Chapter 4 Infiltrators 33

Chapter 5 Final Preparations 42

Chapter 6 Just Living Their Lives 55

Chapter 7 Zero Hour 64

Chapter 8 Mayday 77

Chapter 9 "Were Going to Do Something" 90

Chapter 10 Where Is the Plane? 106

Chapter 11 One Big Family 117

Chapter 12 The FBI Investigates 129

Chapter 13 The "Hick" Coroner 143

Chapter 14 The Tape 153

Chapter 15 "A Common Field One Day …" 163

Chapter 16 Ten Years Later 180

Chapter 17 Legacy 191

United Airlines Flight 93 Crew and Passengers 205

Acknowledgments 213

Sources and Notes 216

General Bibliography 260

Index 265

Editorial Reviews

Mr. McMillan created a compelling narrative of the plot's conception, the terrorist cell formation, pilots' training.. . .and the careful study of U.S. airline security that enabled the 19 hijackers to succeed at striking three targets, killing thousands and wounding a nation. He developed vivid portraits of the ordinary citizens on board thrust into the role of patriots as they desperately attempted to save their own lives and in doing so, spared the U.S Capitol just 20 minutes away.. . .[H]is book will help secure Flight 93's legacy and Somerset County's place in U.S. history.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

[T]he story you already know-but author Tom McMillan offers his readers so much more, starting years before 2001. McMillan gives us a true sense of the people who wereon the plane-each with, it's believed, a role to play in overcoming the terrorists. He then goes beyond that day, to the work that went into recovery and efforts on behalf of the victims' families, ending with a memorial and humble hero on the ground.. . .We know what happens, but this book takes our knowledge a little further by setting mistruths straight, filling in gaps, and telling a story that should make a lot of people proud all over again. I had a hard time tearing myself away from this narrative, and if you remember wherw you were on Sept. 11, 2001, I think you'll feel the same. Flight 93 is a truly fascinating book- so grab it, and buckle in.. .

Marco Eagle

McMillan offers a complete account of what took place aboard United Airlines Flight 93, from its delayed takeoff at Newark International Airport in New Jersey to the moment it plunged upside-down at 563 mph into an open field near Shanksville in rural Somerset County. 'Flight 93' provides a riveting narrative based on interviews, oral histories, transcripts, recordings, personal tours of the crash site and trail evidence made public only in recent years.

Tribune

In the new book Flight 93 by Tom McMillan, you'll read about bravery and what happened in the Pennsylvania skies on 9/11.. .. McMillan gives us a true sense of the people who were on the plane - each with, it's believed, a role to play in overcoming the terrorists. He then goes beyond that day, to the work that went into recovery and efforts on behalf of the victims' families ending with a memorial and a humble hero on the ground.. . .[T]his book takes our knowledge a little further by setting mistruths straight, filling in gaps and telling a story that should make a lot of people proud all over again. I had a hard time tearing myself away from this narrative, and if you remember where you were on September 11, 2001, I think you'll feel the same. Flight 93 is a truly fascinating book - so go grab it, and buckle in.

Sunday Kenosha News

[T]he story you already know-but author Tom McMillan offers his readers so much more, starting years before 2001. McMillan gives us a true sense of the people who wereon the plane-each with, it's believed, a role to play in overcoming the terrorists. He then goes beyond that day, to the work that went into recovery and efforts on behalf of the victims' families, ending with a memorial and humble hero on the ground.. . .We know what happens, but this book takes our knowledge a little further by setting mistruths straight, filling in gaps, and telling a story that should make a lot of people proud all over again. I had a hard time tearing myself away from this narrative, and if you remember where you were on Sept. 11, 2001, I think you'll feel the same. Flight 93 is a truly fascinating book- so grab it, and buckle in.. .

Bluff County Reader

"Familiar story of the hijacked 9/11 plane that crashed into an open field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The so-called “fourth plane” involved in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, United Airlines Flight 93 took off from Newark bound for San Francisco. When four young Middle Eastern men seized control of the cockpit, passengers fought back and prevented the terrorists from reaching their intended target: the Capitol in Washington, D.C. In this debut, McMillan, vice president of communications for the Pittsburgh Penguins and volunteer at the Flight 93 National Memorial, re-creates the event—based on passenger phone calls, the cockpit voice recorder, interviews and the official record of the past 13 years—as well as the aftermath, including the dedication of the memorial in 2011. Noting that “we will never know everything…many of the facts are buried with the heroes,” the author pieces together a vivid picture of the scene within the plane: the hijackers instilling fear in everyone (stabbing passengers, threatening to explode a nonexistent bomb) before killing the cockpit crew; the 40 varied passengers (from lawyers and businessmen to students and retirees), 12 of whom made 35 wrenching phone calls, learning that other planes had just slammed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon; and the brave decision to take back the plane before it destroyed yet another iconic American place. Athletic passengers (a judo champ, a weight lifter, etc.) apparently joined businessman Todd Beamer (“Let’s roll!") and others in storming the cockpit, while the hijacker pilot tried to thwart the sustained assault by rocking the plane. Flight 93 crashed at 563 mph, killing everyone and creating a crater 30 feet across and 15 feet deep. The author recounts the post-crash heroics of coroner Wally Miller and many others in the ruralfarming and coal-mining community. A solid retelling of the tragedy with no new disclosures." - Kirkus Reviews (https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/tom-mcmillan/flight-93/)

From the Publisher

2014-07-02
Familiar story of the hijacked 9/11 plane that crashed intoan open field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.The so-called "fourth plane" involved in the 9/11 terroristattacks, United Airlines Flight 93 took off from Newark bound for SanFrancisco. When four young Middle Eastern men seized control of the cockpit,passengers fought back and prevented the terrorists from reaching theirintended target: the Capitol in Washington, D.C. In this debut, McMillan, vicepresident of communications for the Pittsburgh Penguins and volunteer at theFlight 93 National Memorial, re-creates the event—based on passenger phonecalls, the cockpit voice recorder, interviews and the official record of thepast 13 years—as well as the aftermath, including the dedication of thememorial in 2011. Noting that "we will never know everything…many of the factsare buried with the heroes," the author pieces together a vivid picture of thescene within the plane: the hijackers instilling fear in everyone (stabbingpassengers, threatening to explode a nonexistent bomb) before killing thecockpit crew; the 40 varied passengers (from lawyers and businessmen tostudents and retirees), 12 of whom made 35 wrenching phone calls, learning thatother planes had just slammed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon; andthe brave decision to take back the plane before it destroyed yet anothericonic American place. Athletic passengers (a judo champ, a weight lifter,etc.) apparently joined businessman Todd Beamer ("Let's roll!") and others instorming the cockpit, while the hijacker pilot tried to thwart the sustainedassault by rocking the plane. Flight 93 crashed at 563 mph, killing everyoneand creating a crater 30 feet across and 15 feet deep. The author recounts thepost-crash heroics of coroner Wally Miller and many others in therural farming and coal-mining community.A solid retelling of the tragedy with no new disclosures.

Kirkus Reviews