KANSAS
"Where were you on 9/11?" as remembered by those in Kansas that day.
An Air Force navigator remembers how the United State Air Force responded to the attacks.
1. "I was a navigator in the US Air Force stationed at McConnell AFB in Wichita. When I got into the squadron, there was nobody there except one of the schedulers was listening to something on the radio about the World Trade Center being on fire. The first thing that popped into my head was that for some weird reason they were replaying some news from the 1993 WTC bombing. I asked the other guy if that's what it was about and he told me that a plane had hit one of the twin towers and that everyone was at the TV watching the news.
So I go in to watch the news and everyone is just kind of sitting there dumbfounded. Wow, how can a plane just hit the World Trade Center? I mean, I'm there with a bunch of aviators and we were all a little weirded out. That can't just happen can it?
And then the second plane hit. The DO pointed from guy to guy and said,
'Start running the FPCON Alpha checklist.'
'Start running the FPCON Bravo checklist.'
'You start running the FPCON Charlie checklist.'
'You start running the FPCON Delta checklist.'
Our flights started getting sent back by ATC and so other squadron members started to fill the room. At one point, the news reported that the Washington Mall was on fire to which a young airman exclaimed,
'The mall is on fire! I've been to that mall.'
Not that mall goofball.
I realized that I had been putting off getting my ISOPREP card done, so I told the DO and he said go get it. By the time I had driven over to intel, the first tower had collapsed. By the time I had filled out my isoprep, the second tower had as well.
When I got back to the squadron, I was told to go home and put on crew rest for Charlie alert, an alert status where you basically stay home waiting for a call to go fly. The next evening I was called into Alpha alert, where you are staying in a dormitory waiting for the klaxon to go off. You scramble out to the aircraft and you're airborne in 15 minutes.
Early Thursday morning, the 13th, we were scrambled to refuel F-16s flying combat air patrol over Denver. It was super surreal, we were the only aircraft flying in the entire sector. The pilot wouldn't quit bugging me to just let them ask for direct routing. No, I've based my timing of this flight on our scheduled route!
I sat alert for the rest of that week and then I was among the people deployed to ... Bangor, Maine of all places. Our jets were flying combat air patrol over NYC and Washington DC. Such a strange and bizarre time.
By late October, I was deployed to the middle of the desert flying missions over Afghanistan. The rest of my military career was defined by the Afghan war and then the Iraq war, both as a navigator with the US Air Force and then as an Air Force Liaison with the US Army."
- M. L.
So I go in to watch the news and everyone is just kind of sitting there dumbfounded. Wow, how can a plane just hit the World Trade Center? I mean, I'm there with a bunch of aviators and we were all a little weirded out. That can't just happen can it?
And then the second plane hit. The DO pointed from guy to guy and said,
'Start running the FPCON Alpha checklist.'
'Start running the FPCON Bravo checklist.'
'You start running the FPCON Charlie checklist.'
'You start running the FPCON Delta checklist.'
Our flights started getting sent back by ATC and so other squadron members started to fill the room. At one point, the news reported that the Washington Mall was on fire to which a young airman exclaimed,
'The mall is on fire! I've been to that mall.'
Not that mall goofball.
I realized that I had been putting off getting my ISOPREP card done, so I told the DO and he said go get it. By the time I had driven over to intel, the first tower had collapsed. By the time I had filled out my isoprep, the second tower had as well.
When I got back to the squadron, I was told to go home and put on crew rest for Charlie alert, an alert status where you basically stay home waiting for a call to go fly. The next evening I was called into Alpha alert, where you are staying in a dormitory waiting for the klaxon to go off. You scramble out to the aircraft and you're airborne in 15 minutes.
Early Thursday morning, the 13th, we were scrambled to refuel F-16s flying combat air patrol over Denver. It was super surreal, we were the only aircraft flying in the entire sector. The pilot wouldn't quit bugging me to just let them ask for direct routing. No, I've based my timing of this flight on our scheduled route!
I sat alert for the rest of that week and then I was among the people deployed to ... Bangor, Maine of all places. Our jets were flying combat air patrol over NYC and Washington DC. Such a strange and bizarre time.
By late October, I was deployed to the middle of the desert flying missions over Afghanistan. The rest of my military career was defined by the Afghan war and then the Iraq war, both as a navigator with the US Air Force and then as an Air Force Liaison with the US Army."
- M. L.
Written Stories:
2. I worked a part time job in the electronics area at Sam's Club and our TV's always had a random news channel running. We opened at 7 am for businesses and 9 a.m. for regular so it was pretty quiet when the news of the first plane hit.
I remember watching the televisions and then the 2nd one was hit. Management put the sound on the store speakers, shortly after news of the Pentagon was announced there was lots of worry about possible attacks everywhere in the US. and I got sent home.
I remember there was hardly any traffic on the roads and I made it home before the first tower came down. I watched them fall with my roommate who was in the military.
We walked down to the nearest gas station, the whole city was crazy quiet. Most of us at the apartments were just standing in the parking lot talking about what was going on.
Still just remember how quiet everything felt."
- I. B.
I remember watching the televisions and then the 2nd one was hit. Management put the sound on the store speakers, shortly after news of the Pentagon was announced there was lots of worry about possible attacks everywhere in the US. and I got sent home.
I remember there was hardly any traffic on the roads and I made it home before the first tower came down. I watched them fall with my roommate who was in the military.
We walked down to the nearest gas station, the whole city was crazy quiet. Most of us at the apartments were just standing in the parking lot talking about what was going on.
Still just remember how quiet everything felt."
- I. B.
3. "I was living in rural northeast Kansas with my husband and 1 year old. I got up in the morning and turned on the TV. It was horrifying and hard to believe it was really happening. I remember going outside and the sun was shining and the sky was so blue.
Everything was so peaceful and quiet. It was a surreal day."
- B. M.
Everything was so peaceful and quiet. It was a surreal day."
- B. M.
4. "I was living in a fraternity and going to K-State as a freshmen majoring in computer science. I woke up late for class that morning and got ready in a panic, grabbed my books and ran to class. I got there and the building was so silent. There was no one in the classroom or anywhere for that matter. On the door was a note that read,
'Due to a the plane accident occurring in New York we are canceling class out of respect for those with family and friends in New York.'
It was very strange...so I walked back home and turned on the TV. I watched the news and they were saying It was a some accident. Then the second plane hit.
In that moment I knew the world had just changed."
- M. H.
'Due to a the plane accident occurring in New York we are canceling class out of respect for those with family and friends in New York.'
It was very strange...so I walked back home and turned on the TV. I watched the news and they were saying It was a some accident. Then the second plane hit.
In that moment I knew the world had just changed."
- M. H.
5. "I woke up in my studio overlooking KU's Memorial Stadium to my girlfriend banging on the door. She turned on the TV and we watched before the second tower was hit. The phone lines were busy all day so we couldn't call anyone.
After a few hours, we just went for a walk on the hill to breathe."
- P.
After a few hours, we just went for a walk on the hill to breathe."
- P.
6. "I was working at Sprint HQ with a woman whose husband was a pilot. We stood in front of the TVs all day and watched in real time as the towers fell. Several of my coworkers had previously worked in the Trade Center.
When my coworker finally heard from her husband and we all cried."
- D. L.
When my coworker finally heard from her husband and we all cried."
- D. L.
7. "Was just starting my shift at Overland Park Regional. I watched the second tower fall with a room full of seniors and their somber tone and tears said all.
They had seen more than I in their lives and all said this was the saddest thing they had ever seen."
- P. D.
They had seen more than I in their lives and all said this was the saddest thing they had ever seen."
- P. D.
8. "Topeka High freshman year in Spanish class with Mrs. Gonzales. Mid-to-early class, the intercom announced there was an attack on the World Trade Center, not many more details. All day kids are speculating, but the school day continues on as 'normal.' 6th hour was English, and the teacher nabbed a TV early on and all class was spent watching the news. I learned a lot of the actual details known at the time there.
After 8th hour, we hung out on the veranda awaiting our rides home and one girl was claiming there were bombs that went off that took the towers down, I explained planes flew into both of them. She claimed she knew better so we bet $10 on it.
I asked her at our 10-year reunion where my money was..."
- K.
After 8th hour, we hung out on the veranda awaiting our rides home and one girl was claiming there were bombs that went off that took the towers down, I explained planes flew into both of them. She claimed she knew better so we bet $10 on it.
I asked her at our 10-year reunion where my money was..."
- K.
9. "I was at Lawrence High School and I’ll never forget it because our principal unfortunately had a stroke at some point, so had a very slow way of speaking.
He got on the intercom and said,
'As some of you may know.... the United States is currently under attack.....'
He explained what happened, but I’ll never forget that 5 second pause where I was thinking that Russia had nuked us or something."
- B. L. M.
He got on the intercom and said,
'As some of you may know.... the United States is currently under attack.....'
He explained what happened, but I’ll never forget that 5 second pause where I was thinking that Russia had nuked us or something."
- B. L. M.
10. "I was at the hospital as my mom was in labor. My baby brother was being born as the north tower began to fall."
- L. G.
- L. G.
11. "I was in the 82nd Airborne Division, as an Airborne Infantryman. We were on the last day of a 10 day exercise, and upon returning from the field my unit was to assume DRF1, which stands for Division Ready Force 1, meaning that if any real world situations developed then the unit on DRF1 was supposed to be wheels up in less than 18 hours to any place there was trouble, should the NCA decide if that was necessary. In my 25 years in the Army, up until then, I hadn’t ever heard a 'real life' FLASH FLASH FLASH over a radio net, especially over a Division net.
That’s a day I’ll never forget."
- T. T.
That’s a day I’ll never forget."
- T. T.
12. "I was only 7 years old. My family always goes to the Kansas State fair in September and that morning we were already at the fair. There is a news booth in the fair and a large crowd of people were standing around watching the TVs. My parents stopped for a moment to see what was going on and I, being so young, didn't really understand the implications of what was going on.
They ushered us on and we went about the day as if it was normal. My parents later told me that they didn't want to freak us kids out by standing around and watching the TV."
- Alex Hendricks
They ushered us on and we went about the day as if it was normal. My parents later told me that they didn't want to freak us kids out by standing around and watching the TV."
- Alex Hendricks
13. "In middle school during art class. When we worked on projects, we would listen to a local radio station that plays today's hit.
We knew something was wrong when the hosts were talking a lot instead of playing music."
- M. R.
We knew something was wrong when the hosts were talking a lot instead of playing music."
- M. R.
14. "I was in 8th grade in the hallway between classes, when one of my friends said that something was happening in New York. My next class was History, and the TV was already set up in the room. We watched as the second tower was hit.
I don't remember anything else from that school day. I think the teachers were in too much shock to teach anything. When I got home, my parents had the news on and they weren't saying anything.
That's when I knew it was really serious.
My big brother joined the Army a year later."
- Kathryn Herbert
I don't remember anything else from that school day. I think the teachers were in too much shock to teach anything. When I got home, my parents had the news on and they weren't saying anything.
That's when I knew it was really serious.
My big brother joined the Army a year later."
- Kathryn Herbert
15. "I had enlisted in the army just a few months prior. On that fateful morning, I was in my AIT (advanced individual training) at Wichita Air Force Base to become a biomedical maintenance technician. My drill sergeant, a big intimidating man standing at 6’7, literally kicked open the door to my room screaming,
'We're going to war, get down to the day room!' (He was Airborne All the Way)
I put on my physical fitness uniform and headed down to the day room thinking I was about to engage in some physical training. I was still dazed as I was going to my AIT at night and only had about 4 hours of sleep after school and PT. Anyways, I remember watching the second plane hit and just thinking it wasn’t real.
When I enlisted in the army, I thought I would be going to a regular hospital repairing medical equipment. Little did I know, because of those actions....I would end up in the middle of Iraq, having soldiers die in my arms. I served with the finest people ever in the 86th combat support hospital in what were the worst of times but some of the best in my life."
- W. F.
'We're going to war, get down to the day room!' (He was Airborne All the Way)
I put on my physical fitness uniform and headed down to the day room thinking I was about to engage in some physical training. I was still dazed as I was going to my AIT at night and only had about 4 hours of sleep after school and PT. Anyways, I remember watching the second plane hit and just thinking it wasn’t real.
When I enlisted in the army, I thought I would be going to a regular hospital repairing medical equipment. Little did I know, because of those actions....I would end up in the middle of Iraq, having soldiers die in my arms. I served with the finest people ever in the 86th combat support hospital in what were the worst of times but some of the best in my life."
- W. F.
16. "I was in 10th grade in South Central Kansas. An office assistant came in to my morning English class to tell us to turn on the news because a plane had hit the World Trade Center. By the time we tuned in, both planes had hit and it felt like it was being replayed over and over. Then another plane crashed into the Pentagon, then the towers were collapsing, another plane went down, this time in a field. Pretty much every class I went to that day had the news on in the background and we all just stared at it in a daze, some people telling stories of their trips to NY or their relatives that lived in the area. Wondering how many more planes there would be... We lived less than an hour from McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita, would that be a target too? It was horrifying and I still tear up re-reading news articles about it."
- Rachel G.
- Rachel G.
17. "I was working construction, putting in concrete forms to pave some areas between greenhouses. One of the guys had just taken the truck and gone up to the shop to get a tool we needed. When he drove back up, it was time for break. When I hopped in the truck to drive up to the break area, he said,
'I just heard on Bob & Tom that someone flew a plane into the World Trade Center.'
I thought it had to be a joke since Bob & Tom was a comedy show. When we walked into the break room, the TV was on - showing as the second plane hit on live television. We only had 15 minutes for that break. I just remember no one really freaking out about it that badly. There wasn't any panic, until the occasional run on gasoline later."
- W. L.
'I just heard on Bob & Tom that someone flew a plane into the World Trade Center.'
I thought it had to be a joke since Bob & Tom was a comedy show. When we walked into the break room, the TV was on - showing as the second plane hit on live television. We only had 15 minutes for that break. I just remember no one really freaking out about it that badly. There wasn't any panic, until the occasional run on gasoline later."
- W. L.
18. "I was in middle school math class when the planes hit, but our teacher turned off her radio! It was only after the period ended that she turned her radio back on to get updates to what I assumed was an accident. It was so quiet
The only other event I can remember being so quiet was when the Iraq War started. I was in an Applebee's with my parents, on vacation with them and family friends. The whole place went quiet to listen to President Bush announce it, I've never heard a restaurant that quiet in my life."
- K. D.
The only other event I can remember being so quiet was when the Iraq War started. I was in an Applebee's with my parents, on vacation with them and family friends. The whole place went quiet to listen to President Bush announce it, I've never heard a restaurant that quiet in my life."
- K. D.
19. "I was a student at KSU and I had a spill on my bicycle that morning where I went over the handlebars. There were no injuries except a scrape on my arm. I biked to my first class that day at 8:00, cleaned up my arm in the restroom and went to class a few minutes late. After I biked over to the cafeteria when class got out, I saw the cafeteria TV was on, but that wasn't unusual because they were always showing movie trailers, sneak peeks and stuff to us college students. I saw the explosions replaying from a distance and figured it was another preview. It never occurred to me that it was news until I went back to my dorm room about 10:30 and got online... That's when I felt my stomach drop. It started sinking in, and I felt so bad and stupid for thinking I was watching a Hollywood marketing ploy."
- Nick
- Nick
20. "I was a Topeka High School junior, skipping class and driving around town with a friend. I stopped at a pawn shop, you know the kind with a bunch of TVs, to look for some speakers for my car. There were at least five or more televisions on at the time playing the same source. It looked like the employee was watching a movie and I thought it was a part of Die Hard that I didn’t recall. I asked him if it was a movie and he filled me as it had just happened. I stayed in the shop for half an hour and watched it with the owner. After that, I went to my gf’s house and watched the news for days. I’ll never forget it."
- A. V.
- A. V.
21. "I was in 3rd grade at Tecumseh South. A decision had been made to not tell us about what had happened or to leave that to our parents. I don't remember anything being off until the bus ride home. There was a huge line of cars at a small, and now demolished, gas station I saw on the way home.
The bus dropped me off at around 4 p.m. and when my mom opened the door I immediately knew something was wrong. I will never forget the look on her face. I had never seen that look before and hope I never will again.
Pain, sadness, fear.
She was barely holding back tears. I know she broke the news to me, but I can't remember what she said. I was too distracted by the news replaying those horrifying images. I learned a new word that day: Terrorist
The bus dropped me off at around 4 p.m. and when my mom opened the door I immediately knew something was wrong. I will never forget the look on her face. I had never seen that look before and hope I never will again.
Pain, sadness, fear.
She was barely holding back tears. I know she broke the news to me, but I can't remember what she said. I was too distracted by the news replaying those horrifying images. I learned a new word that day: Terrorist
Dad got home about two hours later. He was in charge of networks and security at the Topeka location of a major company. He wanted to make sure their emergency backup site at Forbes Field was accessible and ready for the worst. We decided to eat dinner at Pat's Pig while we were there.
As we drove past Forbes on 53rd, I saw lots of vehicles with red and blue lights driving around on the runways and roadways. We had the quietest meal I can remember. Everyone was glued to the TV in there, watching the planes hit the towers over and over. Dad was able to access the backup site without problems, the sites proximity to the base had had him worried. I stayed in the van with my Mom, asking the questions an 8 year old would while he worked.
That night at bedtime, I was scared to go upstairs to my room. I was afraid the terrorists would crash a plane into it. My parents assured me that we weren't important, and that meant we were safe from the terrorists.
I grew up a lot that day and learned that people do truly horrifying things. In the weeks and months that followed, I then saw the best that humanity has to offer. I don't want my kids to experience a national tragedy like that, but in a weird way, I'm glad I did, only because of how we all came together afterwards."
- Anonymous
As we drove past Forbes on 53rd, I saw lots of vehicles with red and blue lights driving around on the runways and roadways. We had the quietest meal I can remember. Everyone was glued to the TV in there, watching the planes hit the towers over and over. Dad was able to access the backup site without problems, the sites proximity to the base had had him worried. I stayed in the van with my Mom, asking the questions an 8 year old would while he worked.
That night at bedtime, I was scared to go upstairs to my room. I was afraid the terrorists would crash a plane into it. My parents assured me that we weren't important, and that meant we were safe from the terrorists.
I grew up a lot that day and learned that people do truly horrifying things. In the weeks and months that followed, I then saw the best that humanity has to offer. I don't want my kids to experience a national tragedy like that, but in a weird way, I'm glad I did, only because of how we all came together afterwards."
- Anonymous
22. "I was in sophomore English class. We were reading the apocalyptic novel "Alas, Babylon" and getting ready to write a paper about war and the impact it would have on our lives.
We watched the news till lunch, then the administration made us turn off the TV's and get back to school."
- F. T.
We watched the news till lunch, then the administration made us turn off the TV's and get back to school."
- F. T.
23. "I was in Wichita, working at a local hospital IT department, and someone got word to turn on the conference room TV. We watched the towers fall. Stunned is the only thing I can remember feeling. I remembered something my 9th grade science teacher, Mr Chandler, said when we learning about the buildings:
'The Twin Towers were being constructed strong enough to support being hit by a Boeing 707. Isn't it sad that the architect had to take a hijacked plane into account when he designed a building?'
Then I was almost physically sickened. The 767s that hit the buildings weigh between 100,000 and 150,000 pounds more than a 707.
A day or two later I was scheduled to meet with reps from an international medical business who lived in Boston. Only one arrived, and he was early. Once everyone got to the meeting, he explained that he was having a hard time concentrating. Before 9/11, he had been invited by a friend to fly out for a sporting event. His originally scheduled flight, American 77, was the plane that hit the Pentagon, and one of his team members – who was supposed to attend the meeting also – WAS on it.
We didn't get much done at that meeting.
I live near McConnell AFB. It got busy, but the rest of the sky was weirdly empty. The jokes about Kansas being a flyover state have some basis in truth, I was so used to seeing contrails, airliners landing in Wichita, and light planes every day. Flights crossing the sky give it a patchwork design that was missing – I noticed them missing every day until flights resumed, another reminder of 9/11."
- Lonnie Heston
'The Twin Towers were being constructed strong enough to support being hit by a Boeing 707. Isn't it sad that the architect had to take a hijacked plane into account when he designed a building?'
Then I was almost physically sickened. The 767s that hit the buildings weigh between 100,000 and 150,000 pounds more than a 707.
A day or two later I was scheduled to meet with reps from an international medical business who lived in Boston. Only one arrived, and he was early. Once everyone got to the meeting, he explained that he was having a hard time concentrating. Before 9/11, he had been invited by a friend to fly out for a sporting event. His originally scheduled flight, American 77, was the plane that hit the Pentagon, and one of his team members – who was supposed to attend the meeting also – WAS on it.
We didn't get much done at that meeting.
I live near McConnell AFB. It got busy, but the rest of the sky was weirdly empty. The jokes about Kansas being a flyover state have some basis in truth, I was so used to seeing contrails, airliners landing in Wichita, and light planes every day. Flights crossing the sky give it a patchwork design that was missing – I noticed them missing every day until flights resumed, another reminder of 9/11."
- Lonnie Heston
24. "I was attending KU and my girlfriend woke me up with a call that morning,
'A plane hit one of the towers!'
I was like, 'Well, that's awful' while trying to wake up to get more info. Then she said,
'A second plane hit the other tower!
At that point, I knew this wasn't an accident. This is an attack. During the next few days, chaos took over. I worked at a gas station at the time, and got to experience the price gouging and sheer panic firsthand."
- C. J.
'A plane hit one of the towers!'
I was like, 'Well, that's awful' while trying to wake up to get more info. Then she said,
'A second plane hit the other tower!
At that point, I knew this wasn't an accident. This is an attack. During the next few days, chaos took over. I worked at a gas station at the time, and got to experience the price gouging and sheer panic firsthand."
- C. J.
25. "I was in sixth grade, we might have left around lunch time. I can't remember, but I do remember my teacher stopping our first lesson to turn the sound on the classroom TV. We saw the footage loop all day - at school and at home.
My dad was a pilot/mechanical engineer and was talking about it all day, week, month.
'If it had been my airplane, they wouldn't have taken control of the cockpit!'
I recall him talking about that a lot, what he would have done and how. He thought it was all a conspiracy.
- Anonymous
My dad was a pilot/mechanical engineer and was talking about it all day, week, month.
'If it had been my airplane, they wouldn't have taken control of the cockpit!'
I recall him talking about that a lot, what he would have done and how. He thought it was all a conspiracy.
- Anonymous