September 11, 2001:
The Attacks 

ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, nineteen Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial aircrafts, intending to strike the World Trade Center and various targets in Washington, D.C.

Following is a brief timeline of the events of the day.

7:59 AM:
American Airlines Flight 11, Boston to Los Angeles, takes off from Logan Airport. 76 passengers, 11 crew members and 5 hijackers are on board.

8:13 AM:
Flight 11's pilot John Ogonowski and first officer Thomas McGuiness make their last radio transmission at 8:13 am. Seconds later, Boston Central Air Traffic Controller Peter Zalewski notices something is wrong with Flight 11 when he fails to receive confirmation of his instructions.

8:14 AM:
United Airlines Flight 175, Boston to Los Angeles, takes off from Logan Airport. 51 passengers, 9 crew members, and 5 hijackers are on board.

8:20 AM:
American Airlines Flight 77 departs Washington Dulles International Airport, en route to Los Angeles. 53 passengers, 6 crew members, and 5 hijackers are on board.

8:42 AM:
After sitting on the runway for 42 minutes due to normal morning air traffic delays, United Airlines Flight 93 departs from Newark International Airport, en route to San Francisco. 33 passengers, 7 crew members, and 4 hijackers are on board.

8:46 AM:
Hijackers deliberately crash American Airlines Flight 11, carrying 87 passengers and crew, into floors 94-98 of the North Tower (1 WTC).

8:52 AM:
New York Air Traffic Controller David Bottiglia attempts to contact United Airlines Flight 175, which has made an unauthorized change in course toward New York City. Bottiglia makes three attempts and receives no response.  Flight 175 Pilot Victor Saracini and First Officer Michael Horrocks make their last routine radio transmission at 8:42 am.

8:54 AM:
While flying over southern Ohio, Flight 77 turns to the south without authorization, beginning a hairpin turn towards Washington DC.  Flight 77 Pilot Charles Burlingame and First Officer David Charlebois make their last routine radio transmission at 8:50 am.

By 9:00 AM:
The Fire Department of New York (FDNY), the New York Police Department (NYPD), and the Port Authority Police Department (PAPD) mobilize at their highest levels.

9:03 AM:
Hijackers deliberately crash United Airlines Flight 175, carrying 60 passengers and crew, into floors 78-84 of the South Tower (2 WTC).

By 9:15 AM:
New York City officials begin closing bridges and tunnels to all except emergency personnel and pedestrians.

9:25 AM:
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) orders the first ever nationwide ground-stop, prohibiting the take-off of flights.

9:37 AM:
Hijackers deliberately crash American Airlines Flight 77, carrying 59 passengers and crew, into the Pentagon, near Washington, D.C.

9:40 AM:
The FAA orders all 4,546 planes in North American airspace to land at the nearest airport.

By 9:45 AM:
The White House, the Empire State Building, the United Nations, Disney World and other major U.S. sites are evacuated.

9:59 AM:
The South Tower (WTC 2) collapses.

10:03 AM:
After learning of the other attacks, passengers on United Airlines Flight 93, which carries 40 passengers and crew, launch a counter-attack on hijackers aboard their plane to try to seize control of the aircraft. In response, the hijackers crash the plane into an empty field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.

10:28 AM:
The North Tower (WTC 1) collapses. All 16 acres of the WTC site are in ruins. A rescue and recovery effort begins immediately.

11:02 AM:
NYC Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani orders the evacuation of all of Lower Manhattan below Canal Street, including workers, residents, tourists, and school children.

5:20 PM:
7 WTC collapses.

8:30 PM:
President George W. Bush addresses the nation.

The crash of the planes into the WTC towers triggered the largest response operation in NYC history. Within approximately 30 minutes, all local bridges, tunnels, highways and airports were closed; sensitive locations around the city were secured and government buildings are evacuated. Within an hour, all U.S. flights were halted and military fighters had established combat air control over New York City.

Of the approximately 17,400 people in the North and South Towers of the World Trade Center on 9/11, approximately 15,000 people evacuated safely. All seven buildings at the World Trade Center were destroyed and a portion of the Pentagon collapsed.

The attacks resulted in almost 3,000 fatalities -- the largest loss of life from a hostile attack by a foreign entity on American soil. The FDNY lost 343 members of its force, the NYPD lost 23 and the PAPD lost 37, the largest loss of emergency responders in a single event in U.S. history.