Heroic Improv by the Passengers and Crew on Flight #93 to Thwart a Terrorist Plot

This case study illustrates how the passengers and crew on Flight #93 quickly banded together to thwart a terrorist attack in Washington, D.C., September 11, 2011.

On the morning of September 11, 2001, al Qaeda terrorists on a suicide mission hijacked four passenger airplanes to carry out a coordinated attack on the United States. The hijackers of the first two planes deliberately crashed the planes into the World Trade Center complex in New York City, causing a massive conflagration that killed thousands of people. The hijackers of the third plane crashed the plane into the Pentagon, in Arlington, Virginia. 

Used with permission.  www.danaverkourten.com

This illustration is an artist's rendition of what happened on Flight 93, when this group of strangers became a team to thwart the terrorists.

The takeoff of Flight #93 was delayed, so by the time the al Qaeda hijackers were able to overtake the cockpit, the other three planes had already hit their targets. A radio transmission from Flight #93 at 9:28 a.m. captured the sound of a struggle in the cockpit and the hijackers incapacitated the pilot and co-pilot. They said they had a bomb on board and told the passengers and remaining crew to remain seated and be quiet. Then they reprogrammed the plane’s autopilot system to fly the plane to Washington, D.C., probably intent on destroying the U.S. Capitol or the White House.


The 40 passengers and crewmembers on Flight #93 quickly realized the gravity of their situation and within just 30 minutes had developed and implemented a plan to thwart the plans of the al Qaeda hijackers. My analysis of their actions indicates that the passengers and crew on Flight #93 followed the five steps of the Heroic Improv Cycle© to save lives. They realized that their plane had been hijacked (Step 1: Alert: Sharpen perception and awareness of problem at hand.). Many passengers then began using phones on the plane’s seatbacks to call their families, friends, and authorities to report the hijacking (Step 2: Ready: Find resources and overcome communication barriers to address the problem.). From these phone calls, they learned the shocking news that three other hijacked planes had already hit the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Realizing that the gravity of their situation, the passengers and crew banded together spontaneously to come up with a plan of action (Step 3: Connect: Form a team quickly.). They decided that they needed to try to storm the cockpit to regain control of the plane (Step 4: Focus: Aim attention to solve the problem.). Todd Beamer, who had used an onboard phone to call the Federal Bureau of Investigation, gave the signal for the counterattack with the now famous words, “Let’s roll.” At 9:57 a.m., the passengers charged the cockpit door to try regain control of the plane from the hijackers (Step 5: Move: Shift into action together.).

As the unarmed passengers charged the cockpit door, the hijackers tried to disrupt the assault by rocking the plane back and forth and tipping the nose up and down. The passengers continued their assault, forcing the hijackers to crash the plane in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The 40 passengers and crew of Flight #93 did not act as a "soft target.” Through their quick and determined actions, they reversed the predator/prey dynamic and saved many lives. For more information about the Flight #93 story and a montage of the passengers and crew, see the Flight 93 National Memorial website: https://www.nps.gov/flni/learn/photosmultimedia/virtualtour.htm.