Book Review - "Only Plane in the Sky"

Ed Johnson, Special to The Times

When many of us recall the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, the

horrible images of the World Trade Center twin towers collapsing are at

the center of our minds, as well as crashes at the Pentagon Pennsylvania.

There were other events connected to that day that few of us realized
until recently, with the publication of a new book, “The Only Plane in
the Sky.” The author and historian, Garrett Graff, spoke at a recent
book signing at R.J. Julia in Madison, highlighting three historic occurrences for 9-11.

First, it was the largest maritime evacuation of people in recent history, including Dunkirk, with over 500,000 people removed by an armada of public and private boats, from the southern tip of Manhattan to the New Jersey shores. Some laws were broken to accomplish this movement.

Second, it was the responsibility of one man, his first day on the job, to facilitate the landing “at the nearest field” of over 4,500 commercial and private aircraft flying over or into U.S.
airspace, in an effort to clear the skies as fast as possible. This feat was accomplished with few problems, which then allowed air traffic controllers to monitor the president’s plane
(“the only plane in the sky”) and any military aircraft needed for support.

Third, some military fighter aircraft had been quickly launched, but without armament. Two planes were ordered to intercept and bring down Flight 93 over Pennsylvania, thought to still be in the air. Without weapons, the pilots were to actually crash their planes into the airliner. They were saved by the brave passengers of Flight 93, who by fighting the terrorists on the plane, forced it to crash.

The book is a very comprehensive story on the tragedy and events that occurred on that day 18 years ago. Graff spent many years compiling comments from more than
450 people. The action moves back and forth among the occurring events, with the result that it was difficult to put the book down.

Graff noted a dramatic 17-minute period between the first North Tower
crash, which many thought just an accident, and the second
South Tower crash, when we realized we were now actually under attack.

This book serves as an important document for our population who are age 18 and under and do not have a memory of that day, some of whom are now fighting in wars that started when they were babies.

We are reminded of 1941 Pearl Harbor, where many military personnel were caught off guard and trapped on boats. This time was different. The “bombs” were our own commercial aircraft, used to attack civilians, piloted by men willing to die. Most striking is the confusion created by an enemy who, quite literally, attacked us from within our own country in a manner that we had never experienced and are still trying to completely understand.

As one of my classmates, a professor of Tibetan religious studies, said 18 years ago: “We need to know why they hate us so much.”
Ed Johnson lives in Noank.