Where Were You?

The date 9/11 and the events of that tragic day in 2001 has remained on the minds of most Americans. Do you remember where you were that September morning 10 years ago? I was working in the Quality Assurance group at Northwest Airlines and several of us were invited to an FAA meeting that day. We arrived at a local hotel near MSP and I recall as we entered the lobby an unusually large group of people huddled around the television, quietly watching the tragic events unfold. Needless to say the meeting began a little late and didn’t last long. The early realities of what had just happened followed by the anticipation of what was yet to come rapidly impacted everyone. Soon the meeting was disbanded with people returning (or attempting to return) to their offices, homes, or airports around the country. It wasn’t long before the announced shutdown of the National Airspace System came and eventually the entire civil aviation system in this country would come to a halt. Once bustling airports were quiet and aircraft were parked in any available spot. It left most people wondering, now what? Leading up to the 10 year anniversary of that tragic day much has been written, spoken, and televised with surely more stories to come. Aviation was not the only industry affected; everyone’s lives were touched in some way or another. It just happened that aviation was the industry that I, and likely most of you, had dedicated our lives and careers to. In the days, months and years since much has changed and I won’t speculate to what degree the events of that fateful day prompted all that has taken place in this industry, this country, or the world over the last 10 years. Regardless, we now live in different times, with a different and still changing aviation industry. Where were you that September morning 10 years ago?