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'''American Airlines Flight 11''' was a domestic [[Airline|passenger flight]] that was hijacked by five [[al-Qaeda]] terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the [[September 11 attacks]]. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into the [[List of tenants in 1 World Trade Center (1971-2001)|North Tower]] of the [[World Trade Center (1973–2001)|World Trade Center]] complex in [[New York City]], killing everyone still alive aboard the flight and resulting in the deaths of more than one thousand{{efn|name=killed/trapped|The precise number of those killed or trapped by Flight 11's impact has never been conclusively verified, although it is estimated that between 1,344<ref>{{cite news|date=September 10, 2003|title=TWO YEARS LATER: THE 91ST FLOOR; The Line Between Life and Death, Still Indelible|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/10/us/two-years-later-the-91st-floor-the-line-between-life-and-death-still-indelible.html|access-date=November 22, 2022|archive-date=December 5, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205201711/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/10/us/two-years-later-the-91st-floor-the-line-between-life-and-death-still-indelible.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and 1,426<ref name=ncstar1.pdf>{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=238|access-date=February 25, 2023|archive-date=July 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707002217/https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|238}} people were present on floors 92–110 at 08:46 and not a single one of them survived.}} people in the top 18 stories of the skyscraper in addition to causing the demise of numerous others below the trapped floors, making it not only the [[Casualties of the September 11 attacks|deadliest of the four suicide attacks]] executed that morning in terms of both plane and ground fatalities, but also the single deadliest act of terrorism in human history{{efn|The [[Camp Speicher massacre|massacre at Camp Speicher]]―often described as the second deadliest act of terrorism in history after 9/11―is said to have killed between 1,095 and 1,700 people.<ref>{{cite web|title=1095 soldiers still missing since the Speicher massacre by ISIS|url=http://arabic.cnn.com/middleeast/2014/09/18/iraq-isis-camp-speicher|website=CNN Arabic|date=18 September 2014|access-date=15 May 2023|language=ar|archive-date=September 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140920011251/http://arabic.cnn.com/middleeast/2014/09/18/iraq-isis-camp-speicher|url-status=live}}</ref> The upper estimate would tie it with the attack on the World Trade Center's North Tower, but until the true death toll of the massacre becomes known, then the hijacking and crash of Flight 11 was the deadliest act of terrorism on record.}} and the [[List of deadliest aircraft accidents and incidents#Table|deadliest plane crash of all time]].{{efn|While American Airlines Flight 11 is the overall deadliest aviation ''incident'', the deadliest aviation ''accident'' is the [[Tenerife airport disaster]] in 1977.}} The aircraft involved, a [[Boeing 767#767-200ER|Boeing 767-200(ER)]] ([[Aircraft registration|registration]] {{Airreg|N|334AA|}}) with 92 passengers and crew, was flying [[American Airlines]]' daily scheduled morning [[transcontinental flight|transcontinental service]] from [[Logan International Airport|Boston Logan International Airport]] in [[Massachusetts]] to [[Los Angeles International Airport]] in [[California]].
The airplane left the runway at 07:59. Not more than 15 minutes after takeoff, the [[Hijackers in the September 11 attacks|hijackers]] injured two people, murdered one, and breached the cockpit while forcing the passengers and crew to the rear of the aircraft against their will. The assailants quickly overpowered both the captain and the first officer and possibly killed them, allowing lead hijacker [[Mohamed Atta]] to take over the controls, having intensively trained as a pilot in the lead-up to the attacks. Air traffic controllers suspected that the flight was in distress because the crew were no longer responding. They realized the plane had been hijacked when Atta's falsely reassuring announcements for the hostages were transmitted to air traffic control instead of the cabin's PA system as intended. Two flight attendants were able to contact [[American Airlines]] and passed along information relevant to the situation, in particular casualties suffered by the passengers and crew.
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[[File:Firstplane.jpg|thumb|left|[[Jules Naudet]] filmed the impact of Flight 11 as it crashed into the North Tower of the [[World Trade Center (1973–2001)|World Trade Center]].]]
At 8:37 a.m., Flight 11 began a rapid descent of 3,200 feet per minute toward New York City, gradually losing speed. Three minutes before impact, Atta completed his final turn toward Manhattan,<ref name="ntsb"/> flying south over the city in the direction of the World Trade Center. At 08:46,{{efn|name=Time4|The exact time is disputed. The ''[[9/11 Commission Report]]'' states that Flight 11 struck the North Tower at 8:46:40 a.m.,<ref>{{cite book |last= |url=https://9-11commission.gov/report/911Report.pdf |title=9/11 Final Report of the National Commission |year=2004 |page=24 |chapter=Collapse of WTC1 |access-date=February 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816164111/https://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report.pdf |archive-date=August 16, 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> NIST reports 8:46:30 a.m.,<ref>{{cite journal |lastname= |year=2005 |title=Final report on the collapse of the World Trade Center |url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf />{{rp|url-status=live |journal=National Institute of Standards and Technology |page=69 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707002217/https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf |archive-date=July 7, 2021 |access-date=February 25, 2023}}</ref> and some other sources claim 8:46:26 a.m.<ref>{{cite news|date=May 26, 2002|title=102 Minutes: Last Words at the Trade Center; Fighting to Live as the Towers Die|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/102-minutes-last-words-at-the-trade-center-fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-die.html|access-date=June 23, 2023|archive-date=November 14, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114063928/http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/102-minutes-last-words-at-the-trade-center-fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-die.html|url-status=live}}</ref>}} flight attendant Amy Sweeney panicked that her plane was "flying way too low" just as Atta deliberately crashed into the North Tower. The airplane, traveling about {{convert|440|mph|km/h m/s kn}} and loaded with around {{convert|10000|U.S.gal|L impgal}} of jet fuel, struck the skyscraper's northern façade between floors 93 and 99, its nose impacting the 96th floor.<ref name="NIST">{{cite web|url=http://wtc.nist.gov/NISTNCSTAR1-5.pdf | title=NIST NCSTAR1-5: Reconstruction of the Fires in the World Trade Center Towers |date=October 2005 |publisher=[[National Institute of Standards and Technology]] |access-date=May 25, 2008| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080530151724/http://wtc.nist.gov/NISTNCSTAR1-5.pdf| archive-date= May 30, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref>
Hundreds were killed instantly, including everyone on the aircraft and numerous workers in the North Tower.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report_Ch9.htm |title=Heroism and Horror |year=2004 |publisher=National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States |access-date=August 18, 2007| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070815141749/http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report_Ch9.htm| archive-date= August 15, 2007 | url-status= live}}</ref> Many who had been outside of the path of the crashing airliner were incinerated as its fuel exploded.<ref>{{cite book |lastname= |url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf />{{rp|title=Final Report on the Collapse of the World Trade Center Towers |publisher=National Institute of Standards and Technology |year=2005 |page=73 |access-date=February 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707002217/https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf |archive-date=July 7, 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> Studies suggest that as many as 1,426 people may have been present on the top 18 floors of the North Tower when it was struck almost midway into its central core.{{efn|name=killed/trapped}} The core housed three stairwells (A, B and C) extending from the roof to the ground floor, with a distance of just {{convert|70|ft|m|abbr=off}} between each one in the impact region.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.history.com/news/world-trade-center-stairwell-design-9-11|title=How the Design of the World Trade Center Claimed Lives on 9/11|work=History.com|access-date=August 22, 2023|language=en|archive-date=June 5, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190605220000/https://www.history.com/news/world-trade-center-stairwell-design-9-11|url-status=live}}</ref> The size of the hijacked 767 easily severed all three, trapping close to a thousand crash survivors.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Galea |first1=Edwin R |last2=Hulse |first2=Lynn |last3=Day |first3=Rachel |last4=Siddiqui |first4=Asim |last5=Sharp |first5=Gary |date=2012 |title=The UK WTC 9/11 evacuation study: An overview of findings derived from first-hand interview data and computer modelling |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/fam.1070 |journal=Fire and Materials |volume=36 |issue=5–6 |pages=501–521 |doi=10.1002/fam.1070 |s2cid=110718132 |via=Wiley |access-date=August 19, 2023 |archive-date=June 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230629193351/https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/fam.1070 |url-status=live }}</ref> All stairwells from floors 93 up to 99 were destroyed or blocked and elevator service was disrupted from the 50th floor upward.<ref>{{cite book |lastname= |url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf />{{rp|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation |publisher=National Institute of Standards and Technology |year=2005 |page=74 |access-date=February 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707002217/https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf |archive-date=July 7, 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> The airplane descended downward at an angle of about 10 degrees at impact, pushing rubble into stairwells as many as six stories below where it hit; consequently, the 92nd floor was also sealed off from the rest of the tower when falling debris from Flight 11's impact zone walled off each of its stairwells.<ref name="102Mins">{{cite news |last1=Dwyer |first1=Jim |last2=Lipton |first2=Eric |display-authors=etal |date=May 26, 2002 |title=102 Minutes: Last Words at the Trade Center; Fighting to Live as the Towers Die |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/102-minutes-last-words-at-the-trade-center-fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-die.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114063928/http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/102-minutes-last-words-at-the-trade-center-fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-die.html |archive-date=November 14, 2013 |access-date=May 23, 2008 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> The highest survivors in the North Tower came from the 91st floor, while anyone above was left to burn alive, asphyxiate, succumb to toxic exposure from ignited chemicals or be killed in the tower's eventual collapse. Some 100–200 people plummeted from the upper floors, most of whom died by jumping to escape the intense heat, smoke and flames.<ref>{{cite web |last= |year=2005 |title=OBSERVATIONS OF FALLING HUMAN BEINGS FOR WTC 1 |url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Appendix-M_NIST-NCSTAR_1-5A_Sept2005_PDF-pp227-232.pdf |access-date=August 19, 2023 |publisher=National Institute of Standards and Technology |archive-date=May 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210529184432/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Appendix-M_NIST-NCSTAR_1-5A_Sept2005_PDF-pp227-232.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="jump">{{Cite news |author=Cauchon |first1=Dennis |last2=Moore |first2=Martha |date=September 2, 2002 |title=Desperation forced a horrific decision |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-02-jumper_x.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120901152537/http://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-02-jumper_x.htm |archive-date=September 1, 2012 |access-date=February 25, 2023 |work=USA Today |publisher=Gannett}}</ref> Light-to-moderate damage was reported on every floor from ground level to the 92nd, including collapsed walls, missing ceiling tiles, severed wires and smashed windows. The sprinkler system was severed by the impact, causing flooding on various floors throughout the tower. Moreover, burning jet fuel was channeled through the building via elevator shafts and ductwork,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cauchon |first1=Dennis |last2=Moore |first2=Martha T. |title=Elevators were disaster within disaster |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-04-elevator-usat_x.htm |date=September 4, 2002 |work=USA Today |access-date=May 23, 2008 |archive-date=September 11, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120911090208/http://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-04-elevator-usat_x.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> igniting small-scale fires on many floors between the 77th and 91st. Three major flash fires occurred in the 78th and 44th floor skylobbies as well as the main lobby at the base, causing fatal burns nearly a hundred floors below the impact.<ref>{{cite episode |title=Zero Hour |series=Inside 9/11 |series-link=Inside 9/11 |airdate=2005-09-23 |credits=Producers: Colette Beaudry and Michael Cascio |network=[[National Geographic Channel]]}}</ref> The shockwave was felt in both towers.<ref>{{cite book |lastname= |url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf />{{rp|title=Final Report on the Collapse of the World Trade Center Towers |publisher=National Institute of Standards and Technology |year=2005 |page=87 |access-date=February 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707002217/https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf |archive-date=July 7, 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> The northern and western façades of the South Tower were battered by debris<ref>{{cite web|url=https://holdthedoor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/penn-stater.pdf|title=Rob Fazio lost his dad in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. Now he's working to make sure his father's last, selfless act continues to help others.|year=2018|access-date=June 25, 2023|archive-date=September 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210909035934/https://holdthedoor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/penn-stater.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> and a limited number of windows were broken by the explosion. Prevailing winds from the northwest caused the top of the South Tower to become engulfed by the thick smoke pouring southeast, and a number of employees at that altitude reported that the fumes began filtering into their floors alongside the intense heat.<ref>{{cite news |date=May 26, 2002 |title=Accounts From the South Tower |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html |url-status=live |access-date=May 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814233011/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html |archive-date=August 14, 2019 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=September 11 survivor: 'As I left the south tower I heard a plane roaring towards the World Trade Center — I thought it was the end and screamed out my mummy's name'|url=https://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/people/sept-11-survivor-i-thought-this-was-the-end-i-screamed-out-my-mummys-name-3379975|date=September 11, 2021|access-date=May 24, 2023|url-status=live|archive-date=May 18, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230518220101/https://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/people/sept-11-survivor-i-thought-this-was-the-end-i-screamed-out-my-mummys-name-3379975}}</ref>
[[File:WL645c-R1-E074.jpg|thumb|The burning North Tower minutes after the crash of Flight 11]]
[[File:Wtc05-orig-2001-09-11-09-13-05-Charles-Marsh.jpg|alt=photograph of aircraft landing gear found amid debris.|thumb|219x219px|Landing gear from Flight{{spaces}}11 found at West and Rector streets<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hamburger |first1=Ronald |last2=Baker |first2=William |display-authors=1 |date=May 2002 |title=World Trade Center Building Performance Study |url=http://www.fema.gov/pdf/library/fema403_ch2.pdf |url-status=live |journal=FEMA |location=New York, New York |publisher=[[Federal Emergency Management Agency]] |volume=403 |page=19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080527193541/http://www.fema.gov/pdf/library/fema403_ch2.pdf |archive-date=May 27, 2008 |access-date=May 24, 2008}}</ref>]]
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