9/11: Twenty-Two Years Later

How the September 11 attacks shaped and defined the 21st century.

Before September 11, 2001, Osama bin Laden and his terrorist organization al-Qaeda were not quite the household names they are today. Although the emir of terror already had a track record of jihadist activity going back into the 1980s, Osama’s growing threat was severely underestimated by American intelligence. 

That quickly changed when, on that fateful day 22 years ago, al-Qaeda would inflict a deadly strike against the US homeland. 

The North Tower

At 8:46am, American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center. The hijacked aircraft was a Boeing 767, with 92 passengers and crew on board, traveling at a staggering speed of 470 miles per hour. 

Within minutes, US officials scrambled to organize an emergency response from a command center located on the 23rd floor of the Seven World Trade Center. 

With one of the two towers in flames, the tragedy had only just begun. 

The South Tower 

At 9:03am, United Airlines Flight 175, with 65 people aboard, traveling at the speed of 590 miles per hour, smashed into the South Tower. This plane struck the corner of the tower, ripping a diagonal line from the 84th floor to the 78th one. After a mere 56 minutes, the tower crumbled at 9:59am. 

The subsequent scene was a horrifying, apocalyptic one. Victims slowly staggered out of the rumble in a slow, zombie-like fashion. A dust cloud boomed up into the sky, enveloping everything in sight. 

As this was going on, another hijacked Boeing 757 aircraft—American Airlines Flight 77—flew into the western facade of the Pentagon at 9:37am. Not too long after, United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in a field in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania at 10:03 am. That plane was about 20 minutes away from reaching DC, and it was probably intended to strike at the White House or the Capitol Building. 

Chaos in New York

At 10:28am, the North Tower imploded straight down. 

Chaos broke out in New York. Power was done in Lower Manhattan. Phone lines were jammed with over 230 million calls. Hundreds of firefighters were trapped in the Towers; hundreds more bravely raced to the scene. 

The burning Twin Towers rained down dangerous debris, igniting fires on nearby buildings. World Trade Four, Five, and Six were ablaze. World Trade Seven, the city’s secret command center, burned for seven hours before finally collapsing. Just before that, the Port Authority ordered the personnel to evacuate. The order’s origin is unclear, but it saved many lives. 

Some New York residents ran across the Brooklyn Bridge to flee the city. Others sought their escape in vessels piloted by the Army Corps of Engineers. 

At 7:45pm, the New York Police Department reported 78 officers were missing. An estimated 200 firefighters were dead. 

At 10:56pm, police officials announced that there might be victims still alive in the rumble of the World Trade Center. Americans would frantically search for loved ones caught in this ravaged, hellish landscape. 

Conclusion

Before going to sleep, President George W. Bush wrote the following entry in his journal at 11:30pm: “The Pearl Harbor of the 21st century took place today…We think it’s Osama bin Laden.” That statement is a good summary of 9/11’s enduring significance well over two decades later. 

The September 11 attacks were one of the defining moments of the 21st century. Such a flagrant attack on US soil demonstrated the dangers of isolationism and non-participation in global affairs. It revealed the menace of radical Islamic terrorism, which continues to pose an existential threat to the Western democracies. This act of war was a decisive wake-up call, prompting the US and its allies to wage a Global War on Terror, beginning with Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003. For the past 20 years, the anniversary of 9/11 has been commemorated in the US as Patriot Day. 

With the fall of Afghanistan into the hands of the Taliban’s fundamentalist regime in August of 2021, the memory of 9/11 is especially egregious and poignant twenty years later. 

But the legacy of those who fought bravely and served selflessly for the nation and its values—democracy, freedom, and human rights—will never be extinguished. Neither the vicissitudes of international politics, nor the relentless zealotry of jihadist fanatics, will ever eclipse the heroism, resilience, and moral fortitude of America’s crusade for liberty.