Flight 93

https://www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_93_National_Memorial The Flight 93 National Memorial is located at the site of the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked in the September 11 attacks, in Stonycreek Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania, about 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Shanksville, and 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Pittsburgh. The memorial was made to honor the passengers and crew of Flight 93, who stopped the terrorists from reaching their target by fighting the hijackers. On Tuesday morning, September 11, 2001, the U.S. came under attack when four commercial airliners were hijacked and used to strike targets on the ground. Nearly 3,000 people tragically lost their lives. Because of the actions of the 40 passengers and crew aboard one of the planes, Flight 93, the attack on the U.S. Capitol was thwarted. The entrance to the memorial is located on US Route 30/Lincoln Highway. Traveling east on the PA Turnpike take exit 110 - Somerset and follow the signs. Traveling west on the PA Turnpike take exit 146 - Bedford. GPS Address: 6424 Lincoln Highway, Stoystown, PA 15563. Please note mapping programs may note alternate entrances, but the only entrance to the memorial is located on US Route 30. For more details follow the link to our website Flight 93 Visitor Center Visit the desk and talk with a ranger to learn more about the memorial. The visitor center features a permanent exhibit that focuses on the Flight 93 story within the context of September 11, 2001. Visitors are welcome to a self guided tour through inter-active exhibits. *Taking photographs and/or video recordings of the images and displays within the Visitor Center is prohibited.* Below are the directions to the entrance to the permanent memorial which was dedicated on September 10, 2011. All former entrances are closed. GPS: 6424 Lincoln Highway, Stoystown, PA 15563 Please note: Many GPS units may recommend a different route, sometimes taking you to a closed entrance from the early days of the temporary memorial. There is only one entrance, and it is located on US Route 30 (Lincoln Highway). Enter the actual GPS address noted above. Wildflower field at the Memorial Plaza at the crash site Field of white and yellow wildflowers with a white wall in the distance and blue sky above. Wildflower field at the Memorial Plaza at the crash site Wall of Names at the Memorial Plaza at the crash site A white marble wall with names engraved on the the walls and the Ceremonial Gate. Blue sky above. Wall of Names at the Memorial Plaza at the crash site Tower of Voices Wildflower and tall grass with the Tower of Voices behind. The Tower of Voices is the world's tallest chime structure. Entrance to the Visitor Center Tall gray walls with a black metal overhang and glass walls Entrance to the Visitor Center Memorial Gateway Entrance The memorial entrance sign with wilflowers. The Gateway Entrance to Flight 93 with wildflowers. Visitor Center Tall gray walls with a gap and black pathway leading to the gap Flight Path Walkway and Visitor Center View of the Memorial Plaza from the Flight Path Overlook Long glass panel with view of a long black wall and set of white walls in a field below. View of the Memorial Plaza from the Flight Path Overlook Employees Restore Sorber Family Cemetery at Flight 93 National Memorial This summer, four members of the Flight 93 National Memorial maintenance staff cleaned up the area around the Sorber Family Cemetery, completed landscape work, straightened the headstones and installed a fence around the graves. NPS Staff and Sorber family members in the restored cemetery Alternative Break Program Comes Back to Flight 93 National Memorial for Second Year Flight 93 National Memorial, and the other National Parks of Western Pennsylvania, hosted nine students from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown as part of the site’s second annual Alternative Break Service Program. This year’s program theme was “Caring for our Nation’s Parks and Public Lands.” Students preformed service at Flight 93 NMEM, Johnstown Flood NMEM, Fort Necessity NB, Laurel Hill State Park, and Camp Allegheny. "Living Memorial" Grows at Flight 93 National Memorial This past weekend, beginning on Arbor Day and concluding on the last day of National Park Week, Flight 93 National Memorial conducted its 9th annual Plant a Tree at Flight 93 reforestation event. National Park Service staff and the Friends of Flight 93 teamed up with professional foresters and reclamation specialists along with 447 volunteers to plant over 16,800 native Pennsylvania trees on an eight-acre plot of the memorial. Flight 93 National Memorial Breaks Ground and Sound on Tower of Voices and Observes 16th Anniversary of September 11 Flight 93 National Memorial honored the 40 passengers and crew of United Flight 93 with two days of commemorative events. These events included the “Soundbreaking” for the Tower of Voices, a Luminaria, and the 16th Anniversary September 11 Observance. Bat Population Monitoring in western Pennsylvania national parks White-nose syndrome has decimated the populations of several bat species across the Northeast and research indicates that bat populations in western Pennsylvania national parks have been affected by the disease. Many species that were once common, are now rare. In order to better protect bats, the National Park Service continues to study how bat populations are changing. A northern long-eared bat showing symptoms of white-nose syndrome. Western Pennsylvania Virtual Junior Ranger Learn about the everyday heroes at five western Pennsylvania National Park Sites who rose to the challenges that faced them and made history. Answer questions and learn about Allegheny Portage Railroad national Historic Site, Flight 93 National Memorial, Fort Necessity National Battlefield, Friendship Hill National Historic Site and Johnstown Flood National Memorial to become a Virtual Junior Ranger. A collage of employees and kids and the question 2019 Weather In Review: Flight 93 National Memorial The year 2019 was very warm and wet at Flight 93 National Memorial. It was the 7th warmest and 12th wettest year since 1895. View of grassy field with flowers and the memorial under a blue sky. National Park Service Commemoration of the 19th Amendment In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment the National Park Service has developed a number of special programs. This includes online content, exhibits, and special events. The National Park Service’s Cultural Resources Geographic Information Systems (CRGIS) announces the release of a story map that highlights some of these programs and provides information for the public to locate and participate. Opening slide of the 19th Amendment NPS Commemoration Story Map 2020 Weather In Review: Flight 93 National Memorial In all, the year 2020 at Flight 93 National Memorial was very warm and had total precipitation that was above normal. The year ended as the 4th warmest and 31st wettest on record. Flight 93 National Memorial against a blue sky. September 11, 2001, NPS Oral History Project This oral history project recorded the memories and perspectives of NPS staff who experienced the events of 9/11 and their aftermath. Transcripts and a 2004 report about the NPS response are available online. A petinad hand holds a flame aloft in the air. 2021 Weather In Review: Flight 93 National Memorial In all, the year 2021 at Flight 93 National Memorial was very warm but had near-normal precipitation. The year ended as the 7th warmest and 63rd wettest on record. The Allee trail with fall foliage Resilient Forests Initiative - Managing Deer Impacts A healthy forest needs to have enough tree seedlings and saplings to regenerate the forest canopy after a disturbance. Analysis of NPS I&M and other long-term datasets makes it clear that many eastern national parks lack adequate tree regeneration due to decades of over browsing by white-tailed deer. Deer impacts 2022 Weather in Review: Flight 93 National Memorial In total, 2022 was slightly warmer and wetter than average at Flight 93 National Memorial. The year ended as the 38th warmest and 41st wettest on record (since 1895). A view of the black Flight Path Overlook and a portion of the wildflower meadows. NPS Resilient Forest Initiative Restores Forest Ecosystems in Appalachian National Parks In Appalachia, forests are crucial to the health of ecosystems and local communities in and around National Parks. However, forest health monitoring in eastern National Parks has shown that park forests are rapidly changing, and don’t have enough tree regeneration to replace canopy trees as they fall or die. Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds are being used to support the Resilient Forest Initiative in the restoration efforts within these parks. Two NPS workers in a forest. Series: Managing Resilient Forests Initiative for Eastern National Parks Forests in the northeastern U.S. are in peril. Over-abundant deer, invasive plants, and insect pests are negatively impacting park forests, threatening to degrade the scenic vistas and forested landscapes that parks are renowned for. With regional collaboration, parks can manage these impacts and help forests be resilient. This article series explores tools available to park managers to achieve their goals. Healthy forests have many native seedlings and saplings. 2023 Weather in Review: Flight 93 National Memorial It was a near record-setting warm year for Flight 93 National Memorial. The year ended as the 2nd warmest and 48th driest on record (since 1895). A tall lattice-like monument (Tower of Voices) with trees in the background. 2023 Excellence in Education Awards View the 2023 recipients of the National Park Service Excellence in Education Awards, which recognize expertise within the field of education. A woman in a park ranger uniform looks at something with two children outside. Project Profile: Restore Eastern Grasslands The National Park Service will restore up to 4,000 acres of agricultural fields and degraded lands across 37 parks in 15 states. This landscape-scale restoration project will expand the range and connectivity of native grasslands across the eastern US, restore biodiversity and critical ecosystem functions, reduce pesticide use, benefit people and wildlife, and create employment opportunities for diverse early career youth. A park manager and others standing amidst a grassy landscape. Hidden in Plain Sight: Old Growth Remnant Grasslands During 2024 scouting for a large eastern grassland restoration project funded by IRA and BIL, several old growth remnant grasslands were identified in National Capital and Northeast Region parks that were previously unknown. These remnants preserve the genetic integrity of the original grassland flora of the eastern US and are true unexpected treasures that in some cases, were hidden in plain sight. a grassland landscape with distant trees Project Profile: Managing Resilient Eastern Forests The National Park Service will improve the ecological health of eastern forests in 38 parks using an array of management techniques. The NPS has selected forest ecosystems of high ecological and cultural value across multiple parks from Virginia to Maine that are at greatest risk of forest loss due to chronic and interacting stressors. Person gazes up at a tall tree

Flight 93 National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior National Memorial Pennsylvania A common field one day. A field of honor forever. THE TOWER OF VOICES (above) represents the voices of the passengers and crew members. A musical instrument holding 40 wind chimes, the tower stands 93 feet tall in homage to Flight 93. CREW MEMBERS CAPTAIN, JASON M. DAHL ° FIRST OFFICER, LEROY HOMER ° FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: LORRAINE G. BAY ° SANDY WAUGH BRADSHAW ° © PAUL MURDOCH ARCHITECTS AND BIOLINIA WANDA ANITA GREEN ° CEECEE ROSS LYLES ° DEBORAH JACOBS WELSH PA S S E N G E R S CHRISTIAN ADAMS ° TODD M. BEAMER ° ALAN ANTHONY BEAVEN ° MARK BINGHAM ° DEORA FRANCES BODLEY ° MARION R. BRITTON ° THOMAS E. BURNETT, JR. ° WILLIAM JOSEPH CASHMAN ° GEORGINE ROSE CORRIGAN ° PATRICIA CUSHING ° JOSEPH DELUCA ° PATRICK JOSEPH DRISCOLL ° EDWARD PORTER FELT ° JANE C. FOLGER ° COLLEEN L. FRASER ° ANDREW (SONNY) GARCIA ° JEREMY LOGAN GLICK ° KRISTIN OSTERHOLM WHITE GOULD ° LAUREN CATUZZI GRANDCOLAS AND UNBORN CHILD ° DONALD FREEMAN GREENE ° LINDA GRONLUND ° RICHARD J. GUADAGNO ° TOSHIYA KUGE ° HILDA MARCIN ° WALESKA MARTINEZ ° NICOLE CAROL MILLER ° LOUIS J. NACKE II ° DONALD ARTHUR PETERSON ° JEAN HOADLEY PETERSON ° MARK DAVID ROTHENBERG ° CHRISTINE ANN SNYDER ° JOHN TALIGNANI ° HONOR ELIZABETH WAINIO ° September 11, 2001 September 11, 2001, morning: Four commercial airliners are hijacked by al Qaeda terrorists in a planned attack against the United States. Two are fown into the World Trade Center’s twin towers in New York City. A third is fown into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. A fourth plane, United Flight 93, a Boeing 757 bound for San Francisco, California, from Newark, New Jersey, is delayed 25 minutes before takeof. After 46 minutes fying, when over eastern Ohio, hijackers in frst class attack at 9:28 am, incapacitating the captain and frst ofcer. Hijackers turn Flight 93 southeast, headed for Washington, DC, most likely the US Capitol (below). Just before 10 am the plane is seen fying low and erratically over southwestern Pennsylvania. At 10:03 it crashes, upside-down, at 563 miles per hour into this Somerset County feld. There are no survivors. All 33 passengers, seven crew members, and four hijackers are killed. CHARTING THE ACTION OF THE PASSENGERS AND CREW This fight map depicts the delayed takeoff and then the hijacking of Flight 93 by terrorists. Six minutes of struggle kept the airliner from reaching its symbolic target in the Nation’s Capital. © LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, CAROL HIGHSMITH COLLECTION America Attacked The smoke plume from the crash explosion was photographed by a nearby resident (right). September 11, 2001, marked the frst time that terrorists used commercial airliners as weapons to destroy symbolic targets, commit mass murder, and spread fear. Al Qaeda had targeted the World Trade Center, commerce; Pentagon, military; and US Capitol, government. Hay bales covered with tributes from the families of the passengers and crew formed an early, informal memorial (far right) even as the FBI recovery work and search for evidence continued at the crash site (background photo). © VALENCIA MCCLATCHEY © JAMES BEE What happened on board Flight 93—why it crashed here and why it did not strike its target— revealed itself as a story of heroic action. When the terrorist-hijackers took over the plane, passengers and crew began phoning family, friends, and authorities to report the hijacking. Their calls—13 people placed 37 calls—told them of the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks. Their plane, they now realized, was part of a planned attack. Passengers and crew then made a collective decision, by vote, to rush the terrorists and try to retake the plane. The frst volunteer fre fghters on the scene and local residents stand by the smoldering crater 15 minutes after the crash (right). At the direction of the coroner, the crater was backflled. A piece of fuselage (center) was one of the largest objects recovered. The cockpit voice recorder (far right) gave details of the diverted fight. The cockpit voice recorder became important evidence for the FBI in this, its largest-ever investigation. This was the only voice recorder recovered from the four hijacked aircraft to yield information. This “black box” gave critical information about the aircraft’s fnal moments and the struggle for control. Other evidence found here would enable the FBI to trace how the terrorist attacks were fnanced. © MARK STAHL FBI FBI Recovered from the crash site, the cockpit voice recorder captured the shouts, thumps, crashes, and breaking of glass and plates. The 9/11 Commission reported that the hijackers, although remaining in control of the plane, must have judged that the passengers and crew were mere seconds from overcoming them. To continued sounds of the counterattack, Flight 93 crashed into this feld. The crash site is 18 minutes fying time from Washington, DC. The action of unarmed passengers and crew thwarted and def

National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Flight 93 National Memorial Pennsylvania Design Elements Timeless in simplicity and beauty, like its landscape, both stark and serene, the Memorial should be quiet in reverence, yet powerful in form, a place both solemn and uplifting. It should instill pride, and humility. The Memorial should offer intimate experience, yet be heroic in scale. Its strong framework should be open to natural change and allow freedom of personal interpretation. We want to restore life here, to heal the land, and nourish our souls. In this place, a scrap yard will become a gateway and a strip mine will grow into a flowering meadow. But more than restoring health, the Memorial should be radiant, in loving memory of the passengers and crew who gave their lives on Flight 93. NPS Photo / B. Torrey Schwartz Paul Murdoch, Architect Design Contest Flight 93 National Memorial has transformed significantly since Congress authorized its development in 2002. An international design competition was held to choose the design for the permanent memorial. Over 1,100 entries were submitted from 27different countries. The work of Paul Murdoch Architects and Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects was selected after a two-stage competition. The three major components of that design are complete. The first constructed features of the memorial, the Memorial Plaza and the Wall of Names, were dedicated on September 10, 2011. The Visitor Center Complex opened to the public on September 10, 2015. The Tower of Voices, a wind chime tower, was dedicated on September 9, 2018. Gateway Entrance The gateway entrance is located on US Route 30/Lincoln highway. The Approach Road, leading into the memorial, sets the tone and color palette as you drive through the national memorial. The concrete pedestal of the entrance sign contains the pattern of hemlock barn beams that is used throughout the memorial’s design, a nod to its rural past. The sign is black in color to remind us of the industrial coal mining history, and the rusted guard rails hint at the past as a coal mining haul road. The varied uses of this land become apparent. Tower Of Voices The Tower of Voices is a monumental, ninety-three foot tall musical instrument holding forty wind chimes, representing the forty passengers and crew members. It is intended to be a landmark feature near the memorial entrance, visible from US Route 30/Lincoln Highway. The Tower of Voices provides a living memorial in sound to remember the forty through their ongoing voices. There are no other chime structures like the Tower of Voices in the world. The shape and orientation of the tower are designed to optimize air flow through the tower walls. The chime system is designed using music theory to identify a mathematically developed range of frequencies needed to produce the musical notes. The pitches are based on a C Lydian mode and are C,D,E,F#,G, and B. The applied music theory produces musically compatible tones with slight variations in tuning frequencies, creating a set of forty tones (voices) that connote, through consonance, the serenity and nobility of the site. The dissonance recalls the tragic event of September 11, 2001. Flight Path Walkway Overlook Portal Walls Visitor Center The black granite walkway leading through the tall Portal Walls is located along the flight path of Flight 93 and is also a timeline of events. The high walls draw the eyes skyward. Upon reaching the overlook, which continues the flight path, the view opens to the crash site, marked by a 17-ton sandstone boulder, and the Wall of Names. The Portal Walls begin at a height of approximatetly 35 feet, connecting the circle created by the Allée and following the natural contours of the landscape. At their tallest point, they draw the eye skyward, directing your gaze to the airspace along the flight path. The exterior walls of the Visitor Center and the Portal Walls are cast concrete. The concrete was poured in molds made from old hemlock barn beams, giving the walls the texture of the wooden beams. The use of hemlock design patterns throughout the memorial is a reference to the hemlock trees which absorbed the impact of the crash and subsequent explosion of Flight 93. It also references the rural landscape of this tragic event in history. Field of Honor Allée Memorial Groves A curving landform formally defines the edge of the Field of Honor, the field which Flight 93 flew over in its final second of flight. This circle of embrace enhances the landscape and monumental scale of the this area to commemorate the actions of the 40 passengers and crew members of Flight 93. The Allée is lined with 320 Red Sunset maple trees (Acer rubrum) and gently descends, crossing the wetlands, to the focal point, the crash site and debris field. The Memorial Groves, 40 groves of 40 trees for each passenger and crew member, radiate along Ring Road. The Allée, a formal walking path, follows the edge of