8:00 AM Two planes leave Boston's Logan International Airport within minutes of each other. Both are headed for Los Angeles. Five men, believed to be armed with knives, take control of American Airlines Flight 11. The same thing happens on United Flight 175. Within the hour a plane from Newark, New Jersey and another from Washington, D.C., are also hijacked.
8:48 AM Flight 11, carrying 92 passengers, crashes into the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, leaving a gaping hole. The crash is thought to be an accident.
9:03 AM Flight 175, with 65 passengers aboard, smashes into the south tower of the World Trade Center. The disaster appears live on TV. Minutes later, President Bush, who is visiting a school in Sarasota, Florida, appears on TV and says the country has suffered "an apparent terrorist attack."
9:40 AM The plane hijacked in Washington, D.C., crashes into the Pentagon, the nation's military headquarters in Virginia. For the first time in history the government shuts down all airports in the U.S. The White House and U.S. Capitol are cleared out.
9:59 AM The fourth plane, United Flight 93 from Newark, New Jersey, crashes in Pennsylvania, 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. Minutes later, the south tower of the World Trade center collapses. People run to escape the falling debris and smoke
10:29 AM An hour after it is hit by a hijacked plane, the north tower of the World Trade center crumples to the ground. Brave firefighters continue to fight the flames so they can begin the painstaking search for survivors.
10-11:30 AM U.S. monuments, landmarks and tourist sites, including the United Nations, St. Louis Arch, Disney theme parks, Yellowstone National Park and all Federal office buildings are closed down.
5:20 PM A 47-story building at the World Trade Center collapses after burning for hours. Efforts to rescue survivors from the wreckage continue into the night.
8:30 PM President Bush addresses the nation from the Oval Office. He promises to capture and punish "those responsible for these evil acts." Says the President: "These acts were intended to frighten our nation. But they have failed. Our country is strong."