Delta Air Lines Flight 1989

Delta Air Lines Flight 1989 (The Witness Flight)

Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-300ER, similar to the one used in Flight 1989
Incident summary
Date	September 11, 2001
Type	Suspected hijacking
Site	Cleveland, Ohio
Injuries	0
Fatalities	0
Survivors	All on board
Aircraft type	Boeing 767-332
Operator	Delta Air Lines
Tail number	N189DN

Delta Air Lines Flight 1989 was a regularly scheduled flight offering nonstop morning service from Logan International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport on a Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. On September 11, 2001, this flight was one of several flights considered by the U.S. Government as possibly hijacked. The flight had not been compromised, and soon landed safely in Cleveland, Ohio.

Suspected hijacking

The Boston Center air traffic controllers realized that both of the aircraft that had struck the World Trade Center were Boeing 767s departing Logan Airport for Los Angeles and that Delta 1989 fit the same profile as other hijacked flights.^[1] When Delta 1989 failed to acknowledge Boston Center's communications,^{[citation needed]} it was declared a suspected hijacking. Boston Center staff notified the FAA about their suspicions at 9:19 AM Eastern Daylight Time when the FAA’s New England regional office contacted the Herndon Command Center and asked Herndon to relay a request that Cleveland Center notify Delta 1989 to increase cockpit security. Herndon then ordered controllers to send a cockpit warning to Delta 1989.^[2] Boston was tracking Delta 1989 and not receiving any radio contact from the aircraft. In fact, Delta 1989 was in Cleveland airspace and in contact with Cleveland Area Control Center.

The FAA had read Delta 1989 to be in Cleveland airspace and ordered Cleveland Center to watch for Delta 1989 as a suspected hijacking. A Cleveland controller thought he heard "Get out of here" and "We have a bomb on board" coming from Delta 1989. The Delta pilot denied any cockpit intrusion and stated that everyone on board was fine. It was later confirmed that the transmission had come from United Flight 93 which was in the same vicinity as Delta 1989.^[1] The NORAD Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) became aware of Delta 1989 right after the crash of American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon when Boston Center called NEADS at 9:41 AM EDT and told NEADS of the suspicions regarding Delta 1989. At 9:42 AM EDT, the FAA ordered all aircraft in flight to land at the nearest airport. NEADS dispatched fighter aircraft from Ohio and Michigan to intercept the flight, though Delta 1989 never turned off its transponder and NEADS never lost radar contact with the aircraft. NEADS, the FAA Herndon Command Center, and Cleveland Center tracked Delta 1989 until its eventual landing.^[1]

Landing

After pilots reported an unruly, Middle-Eastern passenger^{[citation needed]} and due to confusion and lack of communication between Boston and Cleveland^{[citation needed]}, Delta ordered Flight 1989 to land at Cleveland. The flight reversed course over Toledo, Ohio and landed uneventfully in Cleveland at 9:47 AM.^[1][2] The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and city SWAT team evacuated the airport and held the aircraft at gunpoint on the tarmac for two hours, though all passengers were cleared. After an investigation by local and FBI authorities, it was concluded there was no threat aboard Delta 1989.^{[citation needed]} As noted by the 9/11 Commission report, “[d]uring the course of the morning, there were multiple erroneous reports of hijacked aircraft. The report of American 11 heading south was the first; Delta 1989 was the second”.^[1]

Consolidated Delta 1989 timeline

All times and actions are taken from the official National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission) Report and Public Testimony. All times are Eastern Daylight Time on September 11, 2001.^{[citation needed]}

• 8:05 AM – Delta Flight 1989 departed Boston Logan International Airport bound for Los Angeles, CA;^[3]
• 9:19 AM – FAA New England regional office contacted the Herndon Command Center about their suspicion that Delta 1989 was a potential hijack target and asked Herndon to relay a request that Cleveland Center notify Delta 1989 to increase cockpit security. Herndon then ordered controllers to send a cockpit warning to Delta 1989;
• 9:28 AM – A Cleveland controller thought he heard "Get out of here" and "We have a bomb on board" coming from Delta 1989. The Delta pilot denied any cockpit intrusion and stated that everyone on board was fine. It was later confirmed that that mysterious transmission had come from United Flight 93 which was in the same vicinity as 1989;
• 9:41 AM – NORAD Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) became aware of Delta 1989 right after the crash of American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon when Boston Center called NEADS and told NEADS of their suspicion regarding Delta 1989;
• 9:42 AM – FAA ordered all aircraft in flight to land at the nearest airport;
• 9:47 AM – Delta 1989 landed safely in Cleveland, Ohio.

Flight 1989 in Fiction

In the made for TV movie Homeland Security, Melissa's flight was loosely based on Delta 1989 because both were east-to-west flights that were intercepted. For dramatic effect, fictional scenes were added, including a near shoot-down of the plane.^[4]

Flight Number

As of November 2011, the flight number is not currently used by Delta on any of its flights.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} "The 9/11 Commission Report; Chapter 1.2 Improvising a Homeland Defense"
2. ^ ^{a b} http://www.gpoaccess.gov/911/pdf/fullreport.pdf The 9/11 Commission Report; Chapter 1.1 "Inside the Four Flights"
3. ^ http://www.bts.gov/xml/ontimesummarystatistics/src/index.xml
4. ^ NBC movie, Homeland Security, 2004

External links

• The 9/11 Commission
• [1]