7:59 a.m.: American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 carrying 92 people, departs Boston Logan International Airport bound for Los Angeles. Five hijackers are on board.
8:14 a.m.: United Airlines Flight 175, a Boeing 767 carrying 65 people, departs Boston for Los Angeles.
Around this time, Flight 11 is hijacked. Air traffic controllers lose routine communication with the aircraft.
8:19 a.m.: Flight attendant Betty Ong contacts American Airlines and reports that Flight 11 has been hijacked, the cockpit is inaccessible, and passengers and crew have been stabbed.
8:20 a.m.: American Airlines Flight 77, a Boeing 757 carrying 64 people, departs Washington Dulles International Airport for Los Angeles.
8:24 a.m.: Hijacker Mohamed Atta, a hijacker on Flight 11 accidentally transmits a message intended for passengers over air traffic control frequencies, alerting controllers that the aircraft has been seized.
8:40 a.m.: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) notifies NORAD that Flight 11 is a suspected hijacking. Fighter aircraft are ordered to scramble from Otis Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts.
8:42 a.m.: United Airlines Flight 93, carrying 44 people, departs Newark for San Francisco after a departure delay.
Around this time, Flight 175 is hijacked.
8:46 a.m.: Flight 11 crashes into floors 93-99 of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City at approximately 466 mph. Hundreds are killed instantly, and many people above the impact zone become trapped.
Television networks initially report the event as a possible accident.
WARNING: The following video clip contains strong language
8:52 a.m.: NORAD fighter jets become airborne from Massachusetts, but they are unable to reach New York before the next impact.
9:03 a.m.: Flight 175 strikes the South Tower of the World Trade Center between floors 77 and 85. The collision is broadcast live on television. The second impact confirms the United States is under terrorist attack.
9:05 a.m.: While visiting a school in Sarasota, Florida, President George W. Bush is informed that a second plane has struck the World Trade Center.
Bush later wrote about his response: “I made the decision not to jump up immediately and leave the classroom. I didn’t want to rattle the kids. I wanted to project a sense of calm… I had been in enough crises to know that the first thing the leader has to do is to project calm.” (Miller Center)
9:08 a.m.: The FAA orders restrictions on aircraft entering New York airspace and begins stopping departures headed toward affected areas.
9:24 a.m.: The FAA notifies NORAD that Flight 77 is also suspected of being hijacked.
9:26 a.m.: The FAA issues a nationwide ground stop, preventing civilian aircraft from taking off anywhere in the United States.
9:28 a.m.: Flight 93 is hijacked. Cockpit recordings later reveal a violent struggle during the takeover.
9:37 a.m.: Flight 77 crashes into the western side of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The impact kills everyone aboard and many military and civilian personnel inside the building.
9:32-9:55 a.m.: Flight 93 passengers and crew contact loved ones and authorities using onboard phones and cell phones. They learn about the attacks on New York and Washington.
Realizing their aircraft is likely part of the attack plan, passengers organize an effort to retake control of the plane.
9:55 a.m.: Air Force One takes off from Florida with President George W. Bush aboard.
9:59 a.m.: After burning for 56 minutes, the South Tower (WTC 2) collapses. The collapse generates massive debris clouds and devastates surrounding buildings and streets.
10:03 a.m.: Flight 93 crashes into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania after passengers attempt to storm the cockpit. Investigators later conclude the aircraft’s intended target was likely either the U.S. Capitol or the White House.
10:18 a.m.: President Bush authorizes any non-grounded planes to be shot down.
10:28 a.m.: The North Tower (WTC 1) collapses after burning for 102 minutes. Thousands of rescue workers and civilians are caught in the destruction.
10:53 a.m.: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld orders the US military to move to a higher state of alert, going to DEFCON 3.
11:45 a.m.: Air Force 1 lands at Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport, Louisiana.
12:16 p.m.: The FAA confirms that no commercial aircraft remain in U.S. airspace, completing the unprecedented nationwide grounding of civilian aviation.
1:30 p.m.: Air Force 1 leaves Barksdale.
3:00 p.m.: Air Force 1 lands at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, and President Bush is immediately taken to a secure bunker that is capable of withstanding a nuclear attack.
4:30 p.m.: Air Force 1 leaves Offutt and heads back toward Andrews Air Force base near Washington, DC.
5:20 p.m.: World Trade Center Building 7, a 47-story office tower damaged by debris and fire, collapses.
8:30 p.m.: President Bush addresses the nation.
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