September 11, 2001 Plane Flight Routes

On Tuesday, September 11, 2001 nineteen terrorists affiliated with al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. Each team of hijackers included a trained pilot.

flight	aircraft
Flight 11	Boeing 767-223ER
Flight 175	Boeing 767-222
Flight 77	Boeing 757-223
Flight 93	Boeing 757-223

Boeing 767

Boeing 757

American Airlines Flight 11

On the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, a lot of people were going to be late for work in New York City, which for many started at 9:00 a.m. or later. It was the first day of school for many local children and it also was a primary election day in New York. The weather was clear and comfortable with little wind to speak of, so some took time to do early morning errands. As a result, only about 8,900 of the typical 20,000 people were in WTC 1 shortly before 9:00 a.m. At 8:46:30 a.m. EDT, five hijackers flew American Airlines Flight 11 (AA 11) with 11 crew and 76 passengers into the north face of WTC 1.

The Boeing 767-200ER was a twin-engine, wide-body aircraft, 159 ft 2 in. long, with a wingspan of 156 ft 1 in. Empty, it weighed 183,500 lb. It could carry 181 passengers in its three-class seating configuration and 23,980 gal (158,200 lb) of jet fuel as it covered its maximum cruising range of 6,600 miles. The maximum total weight the plane could carry was specified at 395,000 lb; the typical cruising speed was 530 mph. 

On that day, AA Flight 11 was much lighter. Bound from Boston for Los Angeles, some 3,000 miles away, it carried only about half the full load of jet fuel. When it hit the north tower, it likely contained about 10,000 gal (66,000 lb), evenly distributed between the right and left wing tanks. Because of the tight maneuvers as the plane approached the tower, the baffles in both tanks had directed the fuel toward the inboard side of each wing. The passenger cabin was more than half empty. The cargo bay, carrying less than a full load of luggage, contained five tons of luggage, mail, electronic equipment, and food. The total weight of the aircraft was estimated to be 283,600 lb.

Killed: 92, including nine flight attendants and both pilots, plus many others in the tower.
The Boeing 767 from Boston to Los Angeles, departed from Boston's Logan airport at 07:59 EDT. It hit the north tower between the 95th and the 103rd floor.

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South face damage of WTC 1 with key aircraft component locations marked

When the hijackers took over the aircraft and attempted to communicate with passengers, air traffic controllers overheard what they said. At 08:24 the following transmission came from the plane: "We have some planes. Just stay quiet, and you’ll be OK. We are returning to the airport.” Seconds later another transmission said: “Nobody move. Everything will be OK. If you try to make any moves, you’ll endanger yourself and the aeroplane. Just stay quiet.”

Simulation of aircraft impact damage to the 96th floor in WTC 1

There were no survivors among the 1,355 people who were on or above the 92nd floor. The aircraft had destroyed all egress paths downward, and roof rescue was impossible. Of the roughly 7,545 building occupants who started that morning below the 92nd floor, all but 107 escaped the building. Those left behind were trapped by debris, awaiting assistance, helping others, or were just too late in starting their egress.