why did mohamed atta crash the planewhy did mohamed atta crash the plane

[51] They met three or four times a week to discuss their anti-American feelings and to plot possible attacks. [42] He made acquaintances at al-Quds; some of whom visited him on occasion at Centrumshaus. One of them came on Dec. 26 at Miami International Airport. identifies as one of the 19 hijackers, taxied a small private plane toward a runway when, unexpectedly, it stalled. 5:45 AM - Mohamed Atta and Abdul Aziz al-Omari, two of the intended hijackers, pass through security at the Portland International Jetport in Maine. An airport incident report indicates that the Piper Cherokee stalled at 5:45 p.m. and was removed from the taxiway by 6:20 p.m. "[114] By contrast, criminal justice professor, Adam Lankford, has found evidence that indicated Atta was suicidal, and that his struggles with social isolation, depression, guilt, shame, hopelessness, and rage were extraordinarily similar to the struggles of those who commit conventional suicide and murder-suicide. [100][101][102], In 2005, Army Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer and Congressman Curt Weldon alleged that the Defense Department data mining project, Able Danger, produced a chart that identified Atta, along with Nawaf al-Hazmi, Khalid al-Mihdhar, and Marwan al-Shehhi, as members of a Brooklyn-based al-Qaeda cell in early 2000. On Sept. 12, 2001, investigators combed over the field near Shanksville, Pa., where United Flight 93 crashed a day earlier. Mr. Pursell, meanwhile, had already gotten a cellphone call from Mr. Atta and Mr. Shehhi. American Airlines Flight 11: Mohamed Atta, Egypt (33) - Tactical leader of 9/11 plot and pilot. "[113] In turn, political scientist Robert Pape has claimed that Atta was motivated by his commitment to the political cause, that he was psychologically normal, and that he was "not readily characterized as depressed, not unable to enjoy life, not detached from friends and society. Investigators believe the call was to confirm the attacks were ready to begin. In Germany, he enrolled in the urban planning graduate program at the Hamburg University of Technology. The FBI also reported that "two middle-eastern men" were seen in the parking lot of a Pizza Hut, where Atta is known to have eaten that day. On the morning of September 11, 2001, 46 minutes into United Airlines Flight 93, a nonstop flight from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco, four hijackers took control of the Boeing 757-222. Atta stayed in Cairo awhile with his family after Hauth and Bodenstein flew back to Germany. Ringleader Mohammed Atta and at least four of the other 19 hijackers made six visits to Las Vegas between late May and mid-August of 2001. A separate section of the video shows Osama bin Laden addressing his followers at a complex near Kandahar. There seem to be two primary reasons for his choosing that particular day: that it fell after Labor Day when most Americans (and the George W. Bush administration) would be back at work, maximizing the impact in terms of killing people; and that it was a Tuesday when air travel was easier and the planes less full (that is, fewer hostile passengers to deal with). He mentioned Al Qaeda and said the organization "could use memberships from Americans". Ramzi bin al-Shibh is also identified in the video. He stayed there until 1998. Some say it was the makeup of Jarrah's team, that he had only three instead of four muscle men (because the 20th hijacker and his fourth was denied entry into the U.S.). For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Kersten said in an interview at the agency's headquarters in Wiesbaden that Atta was in Afghanistan from late 1999 until early 2000,[53][54] and that there was evidence that Atta met with Osama bin Laden there. They were among the first to enter the U.S. in May and . During his trip to Las Vegas, he is thought to have used a video camera that he had rented from a Select Photo outlet back in Delray Beach, Florida. [37] Atta was anti-Semitic, believing that Jews controlled the world's media, financial, and political institutions from New York City. "Might have just been doing surveillance detection just to see if somebody might have been following him up in that area, Drumhiller said. [16] Atta and Shehhi established accounts at SunTrust Bank and received wire transfers from Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's nephew in the United Arab Emirates. Published Nov 7, 2001. [110] In an interview on September 24, 2001, Atta Sr. stated, "My son is gone. Just after 9:03 a.m., United 175 crashed into the World Trade Center's South Tower. He . And that may have been what he was doing. In the end though, those international calls and Emails open a window to the falsehood of greater authority to intercept communications. 122 in Coral Springs, Florida, for $840 per month,[68] and assisted with the arrival of the muscle hijackers. A ticket staffer at Portland Airport reported becoming uneasy with the anger of Atta upon being told of the additional screening requirements in Boston, but that he did not act on his suspicions after becoming concerned that he was racially profiling Atta. The video, bearing the date of January 18, 2000, is of good resolution but contains no sound track. By the time it took off, Mohammed Atta was just four minutes away from hitting the North Tower of the World Trade Center. But Atta's night before 9-11 which he spent in Portland, Main -- is a mystery that has puzzled terrorism experts for five years. He said he later called Signature to arrange to retrieve the airplane and was told that they did pass through the company's offices, at least briefly, before renting a car to return to Venice. His mother, Bouthayna Mohamed Mustapha Sheraqi, came from a wealthy farming and trading family and was also educated. Atta earned his private pilot certificate in September, and then he and Shehhi decided to switch flight schools. The 30million CSI-style probe has taken seven years. In this field, we haven't yet any knowledge but we are ready to undergo an intensive training program (up to ATP and eventually higher)." [16], On August 4, Atta is believed to have been at Orlando International Airport waiting to pick up suspected "20th Hijacker" Mohammed al-Qahtani from Dubai, who ended up being held by immigration as "suspicious." ''They were more concerned about being reimbursed for their rental car,'' he recalled. Atta had lived in Germany for approximately five years and also had a "strong record as a student". [48] When he returned in spring 1998, after disappearing for several months, he had grown a thick long beard, and "seemed more serious and aloof" than before to those who knew him. They lived in the area for several months. Bryant said "the picture that came out in the newspaper, that's exactly what that man looked like. At 8:26 a.m., Flight 11 makes . Protection against purely domestic hijackers primarily was lodged with check-in personnel at the airport counter, then with security screeners, and finally with attendants at the gate. Several clues have been found to link their stay in Spain to Syrian-born Imad Eddin Barakat Yarkas (Abu Dahdah), and Amer el Azizi, a Moroccan in Spain. The Israeli Supreme Court later overturned his extradition and set him free. During the meeting, Atta and bin al-Shibh also decided on the targets to be hit, ruling out a strike on a nuclear plant. During his time in the United States, Jarrah left five times to visit his wife in Germany and he constantly communicated with her, both over the phone and in email. The academic team inquired into the effects of redevelopment in the Islamic Cairo, the old quarter, which the government undertook to remodel for tourism. That raises a larger issue, and that is: At any point did anybody in the U.S. knowingly help any of the 19 terrorists prepare for the attack? On December 22, Atta and Shehhi applied to Eagle International for large jet and simulator training for McDonnell Douglas DC-9 and Boeing 737-300 models. identifies as one of the 19 hijackers, taxied a small private plane toward a runway when, unexpectedly, it stalled. Of the four hijacker pilots, Jarrah was the most westernized, coming from a Lebanese secular background and Christian schooling before moving to Germany for university studies. 8:24 am - Hijacker Mohammed Atta makes the first of two accidental transmissions from Flight 11 to ground control (apparently in an attempt to communicate with the plane's cabin). [79], On August 23, Atta's driver license was revoked in absentia after he failed to show up in traffic court to answer the earlier citation for driving without a license. In-laws characterized the father of Atta as "austere, strict, and private," and neighbors viewed the family as reclusive. It is only Jarrah's connection to Bin al-Shibh and others that would have connected him to any plot, including his attendance at the al Quds mosque in Hamburg. "This begs the question of why the pilots had not punched in the hijack code of 7500, also known as Squawking, if things were happening on the plane before the hijackers gained entry to the . And so, we still don't know what he was doing there.". The will was signed by el-Motassadeq and a second person at the mosque. By early 1993, Atta had moved into university housing with two roommates, in Centrumshaus. [109] The elder Mr. Atta said he had spoken with Mohamed by phone the day after on September 12, 2001. Atta flew to Spain on January 4, 2001, to coordinate with bin al-Shibh and returned to the United States on January 10. "[105][106], Five witnesses who had worked on Able Danger and had been questioned by the Defense Department's Inspector General later told investigative journalists that their statements to the IG were distorted by investigators in the final IG's report, or the report omitted essential information that they had provided. Follow the Newsweek live tweet of September 11, 2001 (based upon the new book On That Day) starting at 4:45 a.m. EST @Roadto911. The couple explained at dinner that they ran an exchange program and invited Atta to continue his studies in Germany; they also offered him room and board at their home in the city. LA Times Archives, Tracking the Flights Hijacked on 9/11, Last edited on 21 February 2023, at 21:12, [mmmd elmi wd essj.jed t], Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System, "On Path to the U.S. We will high-jack airliners and crash them into specific targets. [8][29] Among other odd jobs to supplement his income, Atta sometimes worked at a cleaning company and sometimes bought and sold cars. But Atta's night before 9-11 - which he spent in Portland, Main -- is a mystery that has puzzled terrorism experts for five years. The men who planned and carried out the Sept. 11 suicide hijackings staked out the White House before deciding that their targets should be the Pentagon, the World Trade Center and the U.S . ''A guy said, 'Hey, some of your pilots are down here and they left the plane on the causeway,' '' Mr. Kraus recalled. But with more than 200,000 warrants pending on minor offenses in Broward County, he was never picked up. The Web . Now, we are living in Germany since a while for study purposes. But, he agreed, it raised a host of questions, most notably one that remains unanswered: Why were the two novice pilots flying into a heavily trafficked airport on such a busy day? [12], When Atta was ten, his family moved to the Cairo neighborhood of Abdeen, situated near the city center. He was among the highest-scoring students; by his senior year, he was admitted to an exclusive architecture program. [115], Mohamed Mohamed el-Amir Awad el-Sayed Atta, Mohamed Atta's first announcement, heard by ATC at 08:23, Mohamed Atta's second announcement at 08:33, sfn error: no target: CITEREFWright2006 (. On December 26, Atta and Shehhi needed a tow for their rented Piper Cherokee on a taxiway of Miami International Airport after the engine shut down. Atta took control of the plane and crashed it into the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46a.m.[6] The crash led to the collapse of the skyscraper and the deaths of more than 1,600 people. But more likely it is that the origination of his flight in Newark, delayed on the ground for 40 minutes, that made his flight more vulnerable. - 9:03 a.m. He said he wanted to visit the World Trade Center and asked Bryant about the security there. Bin Laden asked them to pledge loyalty and commit to suicide missions, which Atta and the other three Hamburg men all accepted. Having little else to do, he mostly studied at home and easily excelled in school. If you try to make any moves, you'll endanger yourself and the airplane.". In the summer of 2001, Mohamed Atta, the operational leader of the 9/11 conspiracy, drove another conspirator, Ziah Jarrah, to Miami's main airport so that Mr. Jarrah could fly to Germany to visit . If you try to make any moves you'll endanger yourself and the airplane. They board a commuter flight to Boston Logan International Airport, they then board American Airlines Flight 11.. 7:59 AM - Flight 11 takes off from Boston, headed for Los Angeles, California. Shower. Atta and the other Hamburg cell members were recruited by bin Laden and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed for a "planes operation" in the United States. On May 2, Atta received his driver's license in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida. [52], German investigators said that they had evidence that Mohamed Atta trained at al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan from late 1999 to early 2000. The hour-long tape places him in Afghanistan at a decisive moment in the development of the conspiracy when he was given operational command. On Oct. 6, 2021, a new episode of the "Your Mom's House" podcast was released . They drove to Cambrils, where they spent a night at the Hotel Monica. At this time, the pilots stopped responding to air traffic control, and the aircraft began deviating from the planned route. It is not known where he stayed that night, but on the 29th he registered at the Econo Lodge at 1150 South Las Vegas Boulevard. [91] The angle at which Atta crashed into the North Tower severed all means of escape from Floor 92 or higher, ensuring that no one on those floors was able to make it out alive before the building collapsed 102 minutes later at 10:28 A.M.[92], Because the flight from Portland to Boston had been delayed,[93] his bags did not make it onto Flight 11. His mother, 79, at the time denied her son's involvement in the attacks and that she feels he is in Afghanistan. Mr. Kraus and Mr. Pursell said that the breakdown could have happened to any pilot on any airfield, but that the response by the two men was wrong. Readers may recall the shaving custom from the media coverage of 9/11. On September 11 we'll live tweet the events of the day, minute by minute, starting at 4:45 a.m. EST, @RoadTo911. On the way, Atta stopped in Reus to pick up Ramzi bin al-Shibh at the airport. ", The other possibility is that Atta went to Portland for a final meeting with an unknown supporter. [87], The connection between the two flights at Logan International Airport was within Terminal B, but the two gates were not connected within security. On April 11, Atta and Shehhi rented an apartment at 10001 Atlantic Blvd, Apt. When Atta returned, he claimed that his passport was lost and applied for a new one, which is a common tactic to erase evidence of travel to places such as Afghanistan. That month, Atta and Shehhi stayed in hotels and rented rooms in New York City on a short-term basis. Mohamed Atta had varied his name on documents, also using "Mehan Atta", "Mohammad El Amir", "Muhammad Atta", "Mohamed El Sayed", "Mohamed Elsayed", "Muhammad al-Amir", "Awag Al Sayyid Atta", and "Awad Al Sayad". [86][89] The plane's transponder was switched off at 8:21a.m. At 8:24:38a.m., a voice believed to be Atta's was heard by air traffic controllers, saying: "We have some planes. The luggage included a copy of Atta's will, written in Arabic, as well as a list of instructions, called "The Last Night". Initially, Mohamed Atta's identity was confused with that of a native Jordanian, Mahmoud Mahmoud Atta, who bombed an Israeli bus in the West Bank in 1986, killing one and severely injuring three. Atta sent 5060 similar e-mails to other flight training schools in the United States. [31][32] Further, after the Egyptian government had imprisoned droves of political activists, he knew better than to trust it not to target him too, with his social and political beliefs being such as they were. [69], On June 27, Atta flew from Fort Lauderdale to Boston, Massachusetts, where he spent a day, and then continued to San Francisco for a short time, and from there to Las Vegas. [76], During the meetings in Spain, Atta and bin al-Shibh had coordinated the details of the attacks. Bin al-Shibh would not discuss this meeting with Fouda. Miami International is controlled, that is, the tower controls the movement of all airplanes on the airfield. The third hijacked plane, American Airlines Flight 77, a Boeing 757 that took off from Dulles Airport . [10] His father, Mohamed el-Amir Awad el-Sayed Atta, was a lawyer, educated in both sharia and civil law. Throughout the summer, Atta met with Nawaf al-Hazmi to discuss the status of the operation on a monthly basis. Between August 17 and September 5, he rented airplanes on 11 separate occasions in Florida, practicing his pilot skills. Atta confirmed that all the muscle hijackers had arrived in the United States, without any problems, but said that he needed five to six more weeks to work out details. Atta and Jarrah appear in high spirits, laughing and smiling in front of the camera. The timing of the Afghanistan training was outlined on August 23, 2002, by a senior investigator. The two al-Shehri brothers selected seats 2A and 2B in first class.

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