Free Republic

Nearly 22 years after al Qaeda terrorists hijacked and crashed four U.S. passenger jets in the worst attacks on American soil since Pearl Harbor, the FBI has disclosed that it is actively investigating an apparent attempt to hijack a fifth plane on 9/11.@media(min-width:0px){#div-gpt-ad-floridabulldog_org-box-3-0-asloaded{max-width:728px!important;max-height:90px!important;}}The plane, a wide-bodied Boeing 767, was operated by United Airlines. At 9 o’clock that morning Flight 23 was scheduled to make a nonstop transcontinental trip from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to Los Angeles. Aboard were about 160 passengers, eight or nine crew members and more than 50,000 gallons of jet fuel.@media(min-width:0px){#div-gpt-ad-floridabulldog_org-medrectangle-3-0-asloaded{max-width:580px!important;max-height:400px!important;}}That Flight 23 in...

Have you heard about the airliner which was ordered back to the gate on 9/11 when the terrorist attacks began, only to have four young Arab passengers jump off the plane, after which box cutters and Al Qaeda documents were found in their abandoned bags? I’ve heard that story before, but since it was never reported by the U.S. government, and not mentioned by the 9/11 Commission in their official report, I thought it might be another of those urban myths. Until now. Yesterday’s Wilmington (Delaware) News-Journal featured a front-page article on the Delaware Air National Guard’s first female general,...

Have you heard about the airliner which was ordered back to the gate on 9/11 when the terrorist attacks began, only to have four young Arab passengers jump off the plane, after which box cutters and Al Qaeda documents were found in their abandoned bags?

Still in Control Pervez Musharraf was calm, confident and—despite a flurry of rumors—not about to announce his resignation. Instead, the Pakistani president's "concession" to his troubled nation was an announcement that he would allow Britain's Scotland Yard to help local law enforcement agencies with their investigation into last week's assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. Speaking in a nationally televised address two hours after Pakistan's election commission announced the postponement of the ballot to Feb. 18, six weeks later than had been scheduled, Musharraf was notably deferential in his remarks about Bhutto, often invoking her "martyrdom" and extolling...

Saw a documentary, "Grounded on 9-11" on the History Channel a few days ago that mentioned something major about 9-11 that I have not heard before. At 9:00AM on 9-11 United Airlines sent to all planes a warning message regarding the other hijacks. On United Flight 23, that was on the runway, the captain decided on his own not to take off. He fakes a mechanical problem and returns to the gate! When the passengers were asked to exit the plan three Middle Eastern men, or possibly as many as six, refuse to follow the request to deplane. Security is...

Today, Ed Ballinger will speak to a roomful of strangers about the one subject he doesn't care to discuss: The first two hours of his shift as a flight dispatcher for United Airlines on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. The Arlington Heights resident and former United Airlines employee will meet with a sub-committee of the 9/11 commission in Washington, D.C., so panel members can decide whether his testimony warrants his appearance before the full commission. Ballinger is there because he was in charge of United flights 175 and 93 when they crashed into the World Trade Center and a...