Stonycreek Township near Stoystown in Somerset County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
"In the cockpit. If we don't, we'll die!"
Flight 93 National Memorial
— National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior —
Fighting Back
In less than 30 minutes, the passengers and crew, mostly strangers to each other, gathered information and took action. They rushed from the back of the plane toward their hijackers and the cockpit. The cockpit voice recorder captured the sounds of this life-and-death struggle: shouts, screams, calls to action, and breaking glassware.
As the passengers and crew fought to regain control, one terrorist shouted, "Pull it down!" In the flight's final moments, it rolled upside down and at 10:03 am, crashed into an empty field at 563 miles per hour. Upon impact, over 5,500 gallons of jet fuel ignited, creating a ball of fire that rose above the trees. People nearby reported that the black cloud glittered with bits of metal debris in the bright sunlight.
[Caption for top photo:]
Interior view looking forward to the cockpit of a Boeing 757. Airfones on the backs of the middle seats allowed passengers and crew members to make phone calls during the hijacking.
[Caption for bottom left photo:]
First responders and local residents arrived to find the crash site and adjacent trees still smoldering and the ground littered with debris from the plane. The crater measured approximately 15 feet deep and 30 feet across.
[Caption for bottom right photo:]
The cockpit voice recorder was recovered 25 feet down in the crater at the Flight 93 crash site. It revealed the sounds within the cockpit during the final 30 minutes of the flight.
Erected by National Park Service.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: 9/11 Attacks • Air & Space • Communications • Disasters.
Location. 40° 3.042′ N, 78° 54.084′ W. Marker is near Stoystown, Pennsylvania, in Somerset County. It is in Stonycreek Township. It is located in the Memorial Plaza of the Flight 93 National Memorial. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Stoystown PA 15563, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Threat in the Air (here, next to this marker); America Attacked (a few steps from this marker); The Investigation (a few steps from this marker); Welcome to the Memorial Plaza (a few steps from this marker); Since September 11 (a few steps from this marker); a different marker also named Welcome to the Memorial Plaza (within shouting distance of this marker); Crash Site and Debris Field (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); Overlooking History (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Stoystown.
More about this marker. The marker is one a half-dozen located in the Memorial Plaza. It was installed sometime after 2016 and replaced an older marker, which was titled "We're going to do something." In addition to a new title, this newer marker has somewhat different text, an additional photo (of what the inside of the plane looked like) and a revised layout.
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. The original marker: "We're going to do something."
Also see . . . Flight 93 Cockpit Voice Recorder. From the Flight 93 National Memorial official website. The audio is sealed from release, but a transcript of the recording is available.
Excerpt: "The Cockpit Voice Recorder of Flight 93 was recovered on Friday, September 14 at 8:30 pm, from the crater at a depth of 25 feet. The FBI assumed custody of the box and flew it to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) headquarters in Washington D.C. and then to the Honeywell facilities in Redmond, Washington for evaluation and downloading."(Submitted on April 30, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
Credits. This page was last revised on May 3, 2024. It was originally submitted on April 24, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 69 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 24, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 4. submitted on May 3, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.