At the Pentagon, minutes outside Washington D.C., a permanent memorial pays tribute to the victims of the crash of American Airlines Flight 77.
Everyone on that flight was killed, along with another 125 people who were in the building when the plane slammed into it at 9:37 in the morning a decade ago.
“The Pentagon Memorial will stand as an everlasting tribute to 184 innocent souls who perished on these grounds," President George W. Bush announced. "The benches here bear each of their names. And beneath each bench is a shimmering pool filled with the water of life, a testament to those who were taken from us, and to their memories that will live on in our hearts."
Twenty minutes flying time to Washington, D.C., another of the hijacked planes went down in a field in western Pennsylvania as passengers and crew fought back.
Investigators say they believe the terrorists were heading for the Capitol building or the White House, but were stopped by the passengers and crew who learned of the terrifying ends to the other hijackings, and decided to revolt.
“This peaceful place was not chosen by the terrorists. They had other targets for their violence and hate," noted former First Lady Laura Bush. "This spot was chosen by the passengers of Flight 93 who spared our country from even greater horrors.”
In that quiet field in rural Pennsylvania, a permanent memorial is being built to honor the bravery and the lives of the 40 innocent people who perished when United Airlines Flight 93 went down, 10:03 a.m., September 11, 2001.
Timeline information provided by Lisa Ferdinando, VOA News.
