September 11, 2001 Research & Archives

Nancy Wyatt, a manager at the American Airlines flight services office at Logan International Airport in Boston, talks on the phone with an employee at the American Airlines System Operations Control (SOC) center, and passes on to them information that is being provided by a flight attendant on the hijacked Flight 11, but the SOC employee advises Wyatt to keep quiet about the hijacking. [American Airlines, 9/11/2001, pp. 34-41; 9/11 Commission, 2004, pp. 4; 9/11 Commission, 8/26/2004, pp. 14; Rutgers Law Review, 9/7/2011, pp. 14 pdf file]

Amy Sweeney, a flight attendant on Flight 11, called the flight services office at 8:32 a.m., and has since then been providing details of the trouble on her plane to Michael Woodward, an American Airlines flight services manager at Logan Airport (see (8:32 a.m.-8:44 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 8/26/2004, pp. 11]

Wyatt Passes on Details of Call in Real Time - Wyatt, who, like Woodward, is an American Airlines flight services manager, calls the American Airlines SOC in Fort Worth, Texas, at 8:40 a.m. Her call is answered by Ray Howland. [Federal Bureau of Investigation, 9/15/2001, pp. 2-4; 9/11 Commission, 2004, pp. 4; 9/11 Commission, 8/26/2004, pp. 14]

During the call, Wyatt is able to pass on information to Howland in real time, because she is standing next to Woodward and so is hearing his side of the conversation with Sweeney, and she is also able to read the notes he is taking, based on what Sweeney tells him. [9/11 Commission, 1/25/2004 pdf file]

Wyatt Unclear about Name of Flight Attendant - Wyatt is unclear about the identity of the flight attendant Woodward is talking to. At the start of the call with Howland, she says, "We've got the flight attendants on the line here." A couple of minutes later, she says, "We've got... Betty Ong, the purser, on the line." [American Airlines, 9/11/2001, pp. 34-41]

However, Ong is currently on the phone with the American Airlines Southeastern Reservations Office in North Carolina (see 8:18 a.m. September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 8/26/2004, pp. 8]

Finally, another couple of minutes later and after checking with Woodward, Wyatt tells Howland, "Amy Sweeney is on the phone."

Wyatt Passes on Hijackers' Seat Numbers - Based on Sweeney's information, Wyatt says that Flight 11 "is in a rapid descent." She tells Howland that the hijackers were in seats 9D, 9G, and 10B, and she says one of them "speaks no English." She also reports, several minutes into the call, that the hijackers are "in the cockpit." Wyatt tells Howland that two flight attendants, Karen Martin and Barbara Arestegui, have been stabbed. [American Airlines, 9/11/2001, pp. 34-41]

Referring to passenger Daniel Lewin, who was attacked by one of the hijackers (see (8:20 a.m.) September 11, 2001), she says: "There is severe bleeding. There is a slashed throat." She subsequently says, "There is a passenger also injured." [American Airlines, 9/11/2001, pp. 34-41; WBUR, 9/8/2011]

Airline Wants Information Withheld from Plane's Crew - During the call, Howland tells Wyatt that the SOC wants some information to be withheld from Sweeney and the other crew members on Flight 11. After Wyatt says the flight attendants on Flight 11 "are concerned" because they "don't know what's going on in the cockpit," Howland replies that the SOC is "trying to get in contact with the cockpit," but then says, "We don't really want to tell Sweeney that." Wyatt confirms: "Okay, don't. Okay, okay. Got it." And when Wyatt later asks: "Do we know where that plane is going to right now?" Howland replies: "We don't know.... It looks like it's going to JFK" International Airport in New York, but he then says: "I mean, we don't really want to give a whole lot of information to that flight. Okay?" Wyatt confirms: "Okay, we're not. We're not giving them that information to that flight."

Airline Employees Told to Keep Quiet about Hijacking - Wyatt and Howland also want American Airlines employees on the ground to keep quiet about the hijacking. At about 8:46 a.m., while she is still on the phone with Howland, Wyatt says to a colleague of hers: "Evelyn, don't mention this to anyone. Me, you, Beth. Just the five of us. Okay?" [American Airlines, 9/11/2001, pp. 34-41]

("Evelyn" and "Beth" are Evelyn Nunez and Elizabeth Williams, two American Airlines employees at Logan Airport. [Federal Bureau of Investigation, 9/11/2001, pp. 57-58; Federal Bureau of Investigation, 9/13/2001, pp. 3-4; 9/11 Commission, 1/25/2004 pdf file] )

Near the end of her call with Howland, Wyatt asks, "What do you want us to do as far as just keeping our mouths shut and not... ?" Howland answers simply, "That's basically it." [American Airlines, 9/11/2001, pp. 34-41] Wyatt notifies Howland when the call from Sweeney gets disconnected, at around 8:45 a.m. (see (8:44 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 8/26/2004, pp. 14] Her call with Howland ends at 8:48 a.m. [9/11 Commission, 2004, pp. 4]