American Airlines Flight 77 — 2001 hijacking of an airliner and subsequent deliberate crash into The Pentagon in Virginia, USA
One of four coordinated hijackings on September 11, 2001, killing 189 people when the aircraft struck the Pentagon.
Key Facts
- Date of attack
- September 11, 2001, at 09:37 ET
- Total killed
- 189 (64 aboard, 125 in Pentagon) people
- Aircraft type
- Boeing 757-200
- Number of hijackers
- 5 people
- Pentagon Memorial benches
- 184 benches
- Memorial park size
- 1.93 acres
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Five al-Qaeda terrorists boarded American Airlines Flight 77, a scheduled transcontinental flight from Dulles International Airport to Los Angeles, as part of the coordinated September 11 attacks. Lead hijacker Hani Hanjour had undergone extensive flight training in preparation. Thirty-one minutes after takeoff at 08:20 ET, the attackers stormed the cockpit and took control of the aircraft.
Hanjour flew the hijacked Boeing 757-200 into the west side of the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, at 09:37 ET on September 11, 2001. The impact killed all 64 people aboard and 125 inside the building, severely damaged the structure, and ignited a large fire. A partial collapse of the Pentagon's western flank followed by 10:10, with further structural failure forty minutes later.
The damaged sections of the Pentagon were rebuilt by 2002, with occupants returning that August. The 184 victims are commemorated at the Pentagon Memorial adjacent to the crash site, a 1.93-acre park featuring one bench per victim arranged by year of birth. The attack prompted sweeping changes to U.S. national security, aviation security protocols, and foreign policy in the years that followed.