American Airlines flight 11

American Airlines flight 11, domestic passenger flight that was hijacked on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of a coordinated terrorist attack on the United States by al-Qaeda. The plane was flown into the north tower of the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York City. Shortly thereafter, a second hijacked plane, United Airlines flight 175, was flown into the south tower of the WTC. The crashes and subsequent collapse of both towers resulted in the deaths of 2,753 people, per official records. It is the deadliest aviation disaster in history.

Timeline of American Airlines flight 11

Note: All times listed are Eastern Daylight Time.

• 7:59 AM: American Airlines flight 11 departs from Boston’s Logan International Airport, bound for Los Angeles International Airport. Aboard are 11 crew members and 81 passengers, including 5 hijackers.
• 8:14 AM: Flight 11 has its final routine communication with air traffic controllers. Sixteen seconds later, air traffic controllers instruct the pilot to increase the plane’s altitude. However, there is no response, and all subsequent messages are unanswered. It is believed that around this time the hijackers took control of the aircraft by overpowering the crew.
• 8:19 AM: A flight attendant alerts American Airlines that the plane has been hijacked. She reports that the hijackers reportedly have a bomb and that two other flight attendants and a passenger have been stabbed.
• 8:21 AM: The plane’s transponder is turned off, making it difficult for air traffic controllers to monitor the aircraft’s course.
• 8:24 AM: Mistakenly broadcasting over the air traffic control channel instead of the public-address system, hijacker Mohammad Atta, who is piloting the plane, announces, “We have some planes. Just stay quiet, and you’ll be okay. We are returning to the airport.” This was soon followed by “Nobody move. Everything will be okay. If you try to make any moves, you’ll endanger yourself and the airplane. Just stay quiet.”
• 8:37 AM: Air traffic controllers at Boston’s Logan Airport alert the U.S. military’s Northeast Air Defense Sector.
• 8:44 AM: A second flight attendant is on the phone with air officials and reports that the plane is in “rapid descent” and that it is flying “way too low.” The call then abruptly ends.
• 8:46:40 AM: Hijackers fly the airplane into the north tower of the World Trade Center. The impact occurs between floors 93 and 99. The crash instantly kills hundreds, including all those on board.
• 10:28 AM: The north tower collapses.

Other hijacked planes

In addition to flights 11 and 175, two other planes were also hijacked on September 11, 2001: American Airlines flight 77 and United Airlines flight 93. Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon in Virginia, killing 184 people. As passengers started to breach the cockpit door on flight 93, hijackers crashed the plane into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Forty-four people died.