September 11, 2001 Research & Archives

The talkback button on Flight 11, which has been periodically activated since around 8:14 a.m., stops around this time. Some have suggested that this indicates that the hijackers replace pilot John Ogonowski at this time. [Christian Science Monitor, 9/13/2001; MSNBC, 9/15/2001]

Following a call from the FAA's Boston Center to the the FAA's Cape Cod facility reporting the possible hijacking of Flight 11 (see 8:34 a.m. September 11, 2001), and a subsequent call from the Cape Cod facility to Otis Air National Guard Base (see (8:36 a.m.-8:41) September 11, 2001), Lt. Col. Jon Treacy, commander of the 101st Fighter Squadron at Otis, phones NORAD's Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) to report the FAA's request for help and get authorization to launch fighters. By now though, the FAA has already gotten through to NEADS itself, and reported the hijacking (see (8:37 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [Filson, 2003, pp. 50]

Colonel Robert Marr, the battle commander at NORAD's Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS), tries phoning Major General Larry Arnold, the commander of the Continental United States NORAD Region (CONR), to get authorization to scramble fighter jets in response to the hijacked Flight 11, but Arnold is in a teleconference, so Marr has to leave an urgent message requesting that Arnold call him back. [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 20; Spencer, 2008, pp. 31]

Arnold Unavailable to Authorize Launching Fighters - Marr has just learned that the FAA is requesting NORAD assistance with a possible hijacking (see (8:38 a.m.) September 11, 2001), and has therefore ordered that fighter jets at Otis Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, be placed on "battle stations," with the pilots in the cockpits but the engines turned off (see (8:40 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [Filson, 2003, pp. 55; 9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 20]

He now tries calling Arnold at CONR headquarters, at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, to get authorization to scramble the fighters. However, Arnold is in a teleconference with other senior NORAD officials (see (8:30 a.m.-8:40 a.m.) September 11, 2001) and is therefore unavailable to talk to Marr. [Spencer, 2008, pp. 31]

Marr Leaves Urgent Message for Arnold - Marr talks to Colonel Randy Morris, the assistant director of the CONR Regional Air Operations Center, and tells him about the possible hijacking. Morris replies that such an event "falls under law enforcement jurisdiction." Marr says the FAA has requested military assistance with the hijacking and NEADS is "forward leaning" fighters from Otis Air Base, referring to his order to place Otis fighters on battle stations. [9/11 Commission, 2/3/2004 pdf file]

Marr leaves an urgent message for Arnold, stating that he is dealing with a hijacking and requesting that Arnold call him back. [9/11 Commission, 5/23/2003; Spencer, 2008, pp. 31]

Arnold will be given Marr's message after he leaves the teleconference (see (8:40 a.m.) September 11, 2001) and will promptly call Marr back (see (8:42 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [Filson, 2002; 9/11 Commission, 5/23/2003; 9/11 Commission, 2/3/2004 pdf file]

It is unclear why no one interrupts the teleconference to fetch Arnold to come and talk with Marr right away, or at least to immediately pass on Marr's message.

Unclear if Marr Needs Authorization to Scramble Fighters - It is also unclear why Marr seeks authorization from his superior before ordering that fighters be scrambled. According to Lieutenant Colonel Dawne Deskins, the aircraft control and warning officer at NEADS, the mission crew commander at NEADS—i.e. Major Kevin Nasypany—"is the lowest level rank that has the authority to give a scramble order." However, Deskins will tell the 9/11 Commission: "Since Colonel Marr was in the battle cab, it was his role. Since the decision involved a civilian aircraft, he had to be the one who made the decision." [9/11 Commission, 10/30/2003 pdf file]

The 1st Air Force's book about the 9/11 attacks will similarly state that the "sector commander" at NEADS, i.e. Marr, "would have authority to scramble the airplanes." [Filson, 2003, pp. 50]

But Arnold will say the reason the Otis fighters are placed on battle stations instead of being scrambled immediately is that aircraft hijacking is "considered a law enforcement issue." The correct procedure, according to Arnold, is therefore that, if the FAA wants fighters scrambled, it should call the duty officer at the National Military Command Center at the Pentagon. He in turn contacts the NORAD operations center in Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado, to see if fighters are available. The operations center then seeks permission from someone representing the secretary of defense. Finally, "Once that is approved, then we scramble aircraft," Arnold will say (see June 1, 2001). [Filson, 2002; Code One Magazine, 1/2002; 9/11 Commission, 5/23/2003]

Colin Scoggins, the military liaison at the FAA's Boston Center, makes a brief phone call to NORAD's Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) to see if it has been able to find any further information about Flight 11. [Spencer, 2008, pp. 32-33]

Boston Center has just alerted NEADS to the hijacking of Flight 11 (see (8:37 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 20]

Scoggins asks the ID technician who answers his call, "Have you identified the radar target for American 11?" The ID tech says they are still searching for it. Scoggins then tells her that Flight 11 is "50 miles south of Albany," but, according to author Lynn Spencer, this information "won't be of much help to NEADS Surveillance," because "their monochromic displays aren't even capable of showing the outline of states, much less those of cities like Albany or New York." [Spencer, 2008, pp. 33] (However, despite this supposed inadequate capability, NEADS is reportedly able to spot Flight 11 shortly before it crashes into the World Trade Center (see 8:45 a.m.-8:46 a.m. September 11, 2001), locating its radar track "going down the Hudson Valley, straight in from the north toward New York." [Filson, 2003, pp. 56] )

As NEADS has no new information to offer him, Scoggins quickly ends the call. According to Spencer's account, this is the first time Scoggins calls NEADS this morning, after arriving at the Boston Center minutes earlier (see (8:25 a.m.-8:35 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [Spencer, 2008, pp. 33]

But according to a description Scoggins gives to author David Ray Griffin in 2007, it appears that this is his second call, after an initial call at around 8:35 (see (8:35 a.m.) September 11, 2001). Scoggins will tell Griffin that he first called NEADS to inform it that Flight 11 was "20 [miles] south of Albany heading south at a high rate of speed, 600 knots," and then he makes "another call at 50 [miles] south of Albany." [Griffin, 2007, pp. 47]

At NORAD's Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS), the technical sergeant who has been notified of the suspected hijacking of Flight 11 passes on this news to colleagues of his on the NEADS operations floor. [Spencer, 2008, pp. 25] The FAA's Boston Center has just called NEADS to report "a hijacked aircraft headed towards New York," and has requested that fighter jets be launched in response (see (8:37 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 20]

Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Powell, who answers this call, reportedly "bolts up and turns toward the ID section behind him on the ops floor." He says, "We've got a hijack going on!" Master Sergeant Maureen Dooley, the leader of the ID section, mistakenly thinks this is part of the day's training exercise (see (6:30 a.m.) September 11, 2001) and tells the other members of her team: "We have a hijack going on. Get your checklists. The exercise is on." But Powell then clarifies: "No, you don't understand. We have a no-shit hijack!" Sitting next to Dooley is Master Sergeant Joe McCain, the NEADS mission crew commander technician, who gets on the paging system and calls for the mission crew commander (MCC), Major Kevin Nasypany, to come to the operations floor immediately. Nasypany is in charge of the operations floor and needs to know if anything important is happening. He arrives moments later and learns of the hijacking. [Vanity Fair, 8/1/2006; Spencer, 2008, pp. 25-26 and 40]

Flight controllers ask the United Airlines Flight 175 pilots to look for a lost American Airlines plane 10 miles to the south—a reference to Flight 11. They respond that they can see it. They are told to keep away from it. [Guardian, 10/17/2001; Boston Globe, 11/23/2001; 9/11 Commission, 6/17/2004]

Apparently, Flight 175 is not told Flight 11 has been hijacked. Flight 175 itself is hijacked a few minutes later (see 8:41 a.m.-8:42 a.m. September 11, 2001).