When was September 11?
The September 11 attacks occurred on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 AM Eastern Time, the second hit the South Tower at 9:03 AM, the Pentagon was struck at 9:37 AM, and Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania at 10:03 AM. Both towers collapsed within hours, killing nearly 3,000 people in the deadliest terrorist attack in history.
September 11, 2001, was a date that divided American and global history into before and after — a single morning that transformed national security, foreign policy, civil liberties, and the collective psychology of an entire generation.
The morning began routinely. It was a clear, beautiful Tuesday in New York City — the kind of day that made the city gleam. Nineteen hijackers affiliated with al-Qaeda had boarded four domestic flights that morning from airports in Boston, Newark, and Washington, D.C. They carried box cutters and small knives through security checkpoints designed for an era when hijackings ended in negotiations, not suicide missions.
At 8:46 AM, American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center between the 93rd and 99th floors. Initially, many assumed it was a terrible accident. That illusion was shattered at 9:03 AM when United Airlines Flight 175 struck the South Tower between the 77th and 85th floors, live on television cameras that had turned to cover the first impact. The nation and the world watched in real time as it became clear this was a coordinated attack.
At 9:37 AM, American Airlines Flight 77 struck the western facade of the Pentagon — the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense. At 9:59 AM, the South Tower collapsed, sending a massive cloud of dust and debris through Lower Manhattan. At 10:03 AM, United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania — passengers, informed by phone calls about the other attacks, had attempted to retake the cockpit. At 10:28 AM, the North Tower collapsed.
The total death toll was 2,977 people from more than 90 countries: 2,753 at the World Trade Center (including 343 firefighters and 71 law enforcement officers), 184 at the Pentagon, and 40 on Flight 93. The youngest victim was two years old; the oldest was 82. The economic damage was estimated at over $10 billion in property and infrastructure, with broader economic impacts measured in hundreds of billions.
The aftermath reshaped the world. The United States invaded Afghanistan within a month. The Department of Homeland Security was created. The USA PATRIOT Act expanded surveillance powers. Airport security was transformed. The 'War on Terror' became the organizing principle of American foreign policy for two decades. The date — simply '9/11' — became shorthand for the moment when the post-Cold War era's illusion of security was shattered.