Flight 93

This morning we continued our journey east...finishing our trip through Ohio and then driving about twenty miles through West Virginia before making it to Pennsylvania.  Shortly after entering PA we stopped at the Visitor’s Center to get some information and to pick up a couple of caches.  We asked the attendant about things to do in the area.  First she mentioned Braddock’s grave (English General who died here during the French and Indian War) and then she mentioned the memorial for Flight 93 which is about two hours from the Visitor’s Center.

Two hours later we were at the Memorial.  It’s about 20 miles north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike near the Somerset exit (#110).  After turning into the memorial park you drive another three and half miles to the memorial site. 

A memorial nook.

Your visit to the memorial begins with a series of plaques that tell you about the events on 911, focusing on where Flight 93 was throughout that morning.  You then walk along a black slate wall that borders the crash site.  Several nooks are cut into the wall where people leave gifts/memorials/testaments to the 40 who died here.  It’s virtually impossible to walk by these nooks without tears in your eyes.

The columns along the flight path

The end of the memorial consists of 40 columns of polished white granite, each inscribed with the name of one of the 40.  These columns are aligned along the final flight path of Flight 93, where it flew upside down before crashing about 100 yards away.  The actual crash site is marked by a 17 ton stone which was adorned with flowers during our visit.

Detail of one of the columns

The memorial is only partially finished, but even so the visit here is very emotional.  You can’t help but admire the bravery of the crew and passengers as they voted to fight back against the terrorists and you can’t help but to be thankful that the 40 kept the terrorists from crashing Flight 93 into our nation’s capital.  This memorial can’t begin to repay their sacrifice, nor that of their families, but it is a great step forward in honoring them for what they did for us.

Stone marking the crash site.